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What my mother doesn’t know was a quick, charming read. Written in poetry and set up as a teenage girl’s journal this book would hook even the most reluctant reader.
Sophie is on a mission to find Mr. Right. When we begin the book she has just started dating Dylan who she is head over heels in love with (what 15 year old girl is not always head over heels in love ). Through her poems we see Sophie’s relationship with Dylan peak and fizzle out as Sophie realizes there is a lot more to love and relationships then she originally thought. Sophie also deals with making decisions for herself even if it is not a popular decision.
Sophie is incredibly honest and endearing as the narrator. Dylan is a seemingly normal boy who truly cares for Sophie. Murphy is the school outcast that no one really talks to but Sophie secretly finds attractive in a non physical way. Robin is the boy Sophie falls in love with who has things in common with Sophie like a love for art. Sophie’s mom is highly dysfunctional. She seems to be depressed or bipolar or something. She barely functions as a mother.
Issues: popularity, dating, depression, first love, internet safety, family, domestic violence (verbal)
Interesting information: This book reminded me of Angus, Thongs, and Full Frontal Snogging because it focused on a teenage girl and was basically journal entries. I found Sophie very endearing and was pulling for her at the end to make the right decision.