Planet Pregnancy

by Linda Oatman High

For sixteen-year-old Sahara, "life and death and everything in between" depends on the color of a little stick in this YALSA/ALA Quick Pick for Reluctant YA Readers. She waits three long minutes, praying to Jesus, Mary, and all the saints that the stick will turn blue, meaning she isn't pregnant. Instead, the stick turns pick and Sahara's life is changed in a heartbeat. Now she struggles with three choices: "keep, give away, or lose."

Genres: Poetry, Young Adult, Teen, Realistic Fiction, Fiction, Novel In Verse, Contemporary

200 pages, Hardcover

First published October 1, 2008

Reviews

[Becky · Rating 2 out of 5]

High, Linda Oatman. 2008. Planet Pregnancy. 197 pages. October 2008.

Planet Pregnancy is a novel in free verse. Sahara, our narrator, is sixteen going on seventeen. And, as you can guess from the title and cover, her whole world is about to change. Here is how we meet Sahara:

It's September tenth and
I'm holding my breath
because life
and death
and everything
in-between
depends
on a stick
dipped
for less than
ten seconds
in a dish
of pee.

A page or two further...

My name's Sahara,
like the desert.
Unlike the Badlands,
though,
I'm not barren.

Sahara has quite a predicament on her hands no doubt about it. Scared to tell her mother, she keeps her pregnancy a secret from practically everyone. She tells only her closest friend, and even then, she waits until the second trimester.

I remember seeing girls like Sahara on various talk shows. I saw a Dr. Phil episode last week in fact about girls keeping their pregnancies secret, about moms that are so clueless when it comes to knowing, to observing, to seeing what is right in front of them. So there's not a doubt in my mind that this is a realistic portrayal.

As for the poetry itself, it's not perfect. I'm on the fence about it actually. There are places where it's got a certain rhythm, where it seems to work. But there are other places, many places, where it rhymes too much. The rhymes just don't work for me. They sound authentically amateurish. Like they could be how a sixteen-or-seventeen year old might choose to document their life. For me the rhymes took me out of the story. Were a distraction.

For example,

My stomach
is in a curl.
I'm going to
hurl.
"I have
something
to tell you,"
I stammer.
My heart
is a hammer. (129)

Or

She's going
to freak.
I feel weak.
I think I'm
going to barf.
Mom's wearing
a green scarf. (128)

Or

School is so
not cool.
The teachers
are geeks,
and the weeks
drag like rags
through mud.
School is
crud.
At this time
next year,
I'll still be here,
waiting to graduate
in gown and cap
into the Real World
of crap. (99)

However, maybe the rhyming won't annoy other readers. Maybe it's just a personal thing. I just wish it was more natural. No one really and truly rhymes naturally that frequently. People just don't talk like that. Don't think like that.

To end on a more positive note. I think the poems do convey the emotions well. The confusion. The drama. The love. The hate. The uncertainty. The flip-flopping of emotions, of feelings, of hormones. I think it does do a good job of portraying the changes the mind and body go through as it changes through the months of pregnancy.

[Yasmeen · Rating 2 out of 5]

It was OK, but to be honest it was a little repetitive and boring. The story did not really go anywhere and it was very obvious what was going to happen. No twists, no surprises, no character development. Just boring really and the rhyming got really annoying which is strange because I love Ellen Hopkins and she does poetry too, but this. Nope, I don't like it very much at all.

[Jessica · Rating 1 out of 5]

Don't waste your time with this one. It's a fast read but it's horrible.

[Terry · Rating 3 out of 5]

A quick first-person account that begins with Sahara's positive pregnancy test and ends as she leaves the hospital. The sometimes-rhyming verse is occasionally effective, but several readers reported being annoyed by it initially. There's a P-Diddy reference and a couple of f-bombs, but nothing is so specific that it won't last and nothing so profane it couldn't work for some collections for younger teens.

On the down side, Sahara isn't a distinctive narrator. The teen-pregnancy issues have been done before, and her narrative doesn't do much new: she considers abortion, adoption, not telling the father, her mother, etc. I found her to be curiously distant from her baby/fetus, and the metaphor of being on 'planet pregnancy' didn't get used to full effect.

I suspect that the audience for this is at the younger end of the teen spectrum. Not as emotional as A Dance for Three or as edgy as Ellen Hopkins.

[Kate · Rating 2 out of 5]

The verse really annoyed me because it seemed too forced and contrived. The depiction of pregnancy was not accurate and that annoyed me as well. Pretty much forgettable.

[Gina Buchko · Rating 5 out of 5]

I thought Planet Pregnancy was really good. I loved reading about Sahara's teenage pregnancy story. Reading her story made me think about how much it actually takes to being a mom, especially a teenage mother who's boyfriend just broke up with her and he doesn't know. I also liked that the book was in poetic form.

[Emma Rategan · Rating 2 out of 5]

Poor verse-style YA novel about teenage pregnancy. Very shallow, most of the "Poetry" feels extremely contrived and juvenile. I did NOT appreciate the rhyming free verse...it made for many awkward moments. A disappointing read, to say the least.

[Emily Daugherty · Rating 1 out of 5]

One of the worst books I’ve ever wasted my time on.

[MakenzieB · Rating 4 out of 5]

One word that I would use to describe Planet Pregnancy is decisions. The reason why I used the word decisions is because the main character Sahara gets pregnant, and she has to make a lot of the right decisions if she wants things to turn out alright.
Planet Pregnancy is about the main character Sahara, and how she gets pregnant, but it's not a good thing because she is only 17. Sahara has to decide if she should put her kid up for adoption, or if she should lie to her mom about how she got pregnant or even tell her mom if she's pregnant, Also Sahara has to decide if she wants to tell the baby's father that she is pregnant. Sahara doesn't have the best family, her dad left them when she was young, so her mom is a single mom to0 three kids, and she isn't very wealthy. Overall Sahara is going through a very rough patch in her life. I don't really think that I connected to any of the characters in the book. The reason why I don't connect to anyone in this book is because I haven't been in any situation similar to Sahara or her family's.
I would give this book a positive review because it was a short easy read, and I liked the way it was written because the pages were short. Also, I don't think that the book ever got boring it was mostly pretty interesting throughout. Lastly, I thought the plot was very believable. The reason why the plot was believable is because I think it would be hard to be pregnant at age 17 with no support from anyone, and that's how Sahara's life is.

[Jenny Tiegs · Rating 5 out of 5]

Everything in Sahara’s life depends on a “stick dipped for less than ten seconds in a dish of pee”(pg. 1). She is sixteen and pregnant, of course, after the first time she had sex with a boy who she knew was a loser. This witty novel, written in verse, is a quick read, but do not be mislead. The author packs a big emotional punch in this short novel. She is afraid to tell her mother, who is more worried about ski trips than her daughter. Can’t tell her sister, even after she complains about how lazy she is. She dreads telling her ultra-religious best friend, fearing she will lose her. She grows under big clothes and stretchy pants, contemplating three choices: “keep, give away, or lose.” She feels alone on Planet Pregnancy.
I really enjoyed this book because it was truthful. I could really hear the sixteen-year-old voice in Sahara, dealing with denial, anger, frustration, fear and finally determination. Since it is written in verse, you may get more meaning out of it if you take the time to pause at each line (I noticed it rhymed!) then speed read it. Either way, you get the point.
My only complaint was Sahara waited until she was 5 months pregnant to go to the doctor! I know this is the reality of some situations, but the idea was barely addressed.

[Viviana · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is about a girl that gets pregnant at 16 years old and the first thing she says, is that she is waiting for the pink line to appear which is the pregnancy test. when the test is positive she gets really scared and doesn't tell anybody. After this she starts getting nausea and other symptoms. The months pass and she relates the story of what she feels. At first she doesn't want the baby and calls the baby, embryo and it. Later she calls the guy that got her pregnant and tells him that she is pregnant from him, he says its not his and hangs up. she goes in labor and the baby is born and that is when she decides to keep the baby.



• Why did you chose the book you read? because one friend recommended it to many after summer school

• Did you like it? Why or why not? I thought it was interesting to know how teens feel when they get pregnant. This book makes you feel many emotions like you where the main character. It was a little repetitive but interesting.

• Did you relate to the book? If so, how? If not, why not? no because i haven't gotten pregnant.

• Would you recommend this book to a friend? Explain. yes so people could know how hard it is to have a baby as a teen. it makes you feel many things.

[LeahW · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read the book Planet Pregnancy. One word I would use to describe the book is depressing. I chose that word because, the main character, Sahara, is 17 years old and is pregnant. Sahara does not have a very good life and does not have a very good support system at home. Sahra’s father left the family when she was young, so her mom is a single parent and has no money. I don’t think I connect with any of the characters in the book because I don’t have anything in common.
I give the book a positive rating because it is really realistic. Although not a lot of girls get pregnant at our school, it happens all the time at other, bigger, schools. It makes you realize the decisions you make in the present because the future depends on them. The book was definitely a page turner, it was never boring. The book was written in really good detail. The story wasn't hard to concentrate on because it was so realistic and it was very believable.
The book was written very short. The words on the page were written just down the middle and only covered half the page so it was easy to read. I liked that because I hate reading so it made it easier to concentrate and keep going. It also made it go be a lot faster. Overall I think this book deserves a positive rating.

[Allison · Rating 2 out of 5]

High, Linda Oatman Planet Pregnancy pgs. 64 Front Street Language~PG-13, Sexual Content~PG; Violence~PG

Sixteen and pregnant with no one to turn to, is now reality in the life of Sahara. After that stick turned pink she knew her life would never be the same. This is a crisis that unfortunately too many young girls are faced with. In this short novel of free verse poems, Linda Oatman High let readers peak inside the thoughts and feelings of a teenager forced to make adult decisions and grow up too soon.

While the ratings are low for this title, there is discussion of potent topics such as unprotected sex, false rape accusations, and abortion. This novel is appropriate for more mature 8th and 9th graders, but should probably be housed in a high school or public library.

MS/HS –OPTIONAL Allison Madsen~Teen Librarian-SJO Public Library

[Avi Prajapati · Rating 3 out of 5]

Planet Pregnancy is a book about a girl named Sahara who is like any other average high school girl, but she makes the mistake of going out with the wrong guy that gets her pregnant. Her life changes after she sees the results on a stick dipped for less than 10 seconds in her pee. The test showed that she was pregnant. She constantly goes back to that day and thinks about would she could have done differently to make sure her life didn't go wrong in any major way. I thought that this book was decent and could have had a better climax and more importantly a way better plot. But, I have also learned many things from this book, such as how important friends are and what the meaning of a true friend is. Based on what I have read, this book is more for the people who like girl and high school drama.

[Dakotah Mcgraw · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read the book planet pregnancy and I really enjoyed it because it tied in to some teens problem today. Sahara's future depends one this little line on a stick. She is no longer with the guy that is the father of her child. She doesn't want to tell her mom of what had happened and what is about to happen. She doesn't tell her mom until she can't keep it a secret any longer. She noticed she has a new next door neighbor that was actually good looking. She ended up getting to know him and you will have to read the rest to find out what happens next.

I enjoyed it because it was a quick read and had real life problems and it was a real life event. It showed how a girl had to go about telling her mom how she was pregnant. I disliked it because it was told in poem form. It was somewhat choppy and not all the poems had a very good rhyme scheme.

[Terri · Rating 2 out of 5]

I read this novel-in-verse because I felt that it might be something to suggest to fans of Ellen Hopkins. Though the book is edgy (language and talk of sex), and reads fast, I felt it was poorly written. The poetry and use of rhyme were really amateur - there was some nice use of figurative language however. I am not sure that kids will look as much at the writing as the story, however. Sahara, the main character, isn't exactly heroic, though some may feel she makes the right decision in the end - she is whiny, weak, and doesn't own up to the situation she has gotten herself into. The rest of the characters are not well-developed. Because the story will be compelling to teens, and because it is a fast read, I will still recommend it to older teens.

[Kara · Rating 4 out of 5]

I picked up this book at my local library not knowing what to expect. But after reading the back cover, I was hooked. It's a story told in all free-verse poetry (the poetry was really clever and cute) about a sixteen year old girl named Sahara (like the desert) who has just found out she is pregnant by her loser ex-boyfriend. Living in a strict single parent household with a super religious best friend, she is at a loss. Should she keep it, get rid of it, or give it away? She struggles with her secret for the first five months of her pregnancy (although realistically speaking she should have seen a doctor right away) but never loses her wit and charm through her poetry. It's a short read that I finished in about an hour but I loved it nonetheless!

[Karissa · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was told in free verse, and I didn't realize that until I started reading it. I usually don't care for books in verse, but this was such a quick read I didn't mind.

Sahara is pregnant and doesn't want anyone to know, much less her boyfriend. The book starts off with her seeing the pink line proving her pregnancy, and now she doesn't know what to do. And when she finally gets around to telling her mother about the pregnancy, or tries to tell her mother anyways, she lies and says she was raped. Really? That was probably the WORST lie ever.

Predictably, the majority of the book is Sahara trying to decide what she wants to do about this “problem”. In the end, Sahara decides to keep the baby. The ending has her leaving the hospital with her little girl in her arms. Of course.

[Boogerbear23 · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was really interesting. I think it really got into the head of a pregnant teen and her decision making on whether to keep it, "get rid of it", or to give it up for adoption. I especially love how she introduces the main character, Sahara:
" It's September tenth and
I'm holding my breath
because life
and death
and everything
in-between
depends
on a stick
dipped
for less than
ten seconds
in a dish of pee"
That paragraph really drew me in to read more. The whole book is written in free verse poetry form. I think this book really displays all that you need to think about before, during, and after having a baby. I would recommend this book.

[Christina · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book, which is written in verse. It's a poignant look into a 16 year old girl's life when she "fails her EPT test." The author conveys the emotions that run through Sahara as she comes to terms with her life-changing situation. Sahara struggles through the questions of whether or not she should keep, lose, or give away the "egg" inside her. Wrestling with the issues of how to tell her mother, whether or not she should tell her baby's Bio-Dad, and how her situation will effect her friendship with her best friend whose parents are Holy-Rollers. This books tells the story without being judgmental.

[Kricket · Rating 1 out of 5]

hmmm. didn't get very far with this one. for me, novels in free verse can be pretty hit or miss. this was my first experience with a novel in somewhat rhyming verse, and i was not impressed.

ex:

"I wish
I could zip
my lips shut.
My butt
is a bubble,
a sign
of the trouble
ahead for me.

I can't stop eating,
feeding my face
in a race
to nowhere.
'She must
be in a growth
spurt,' Mom says
to my brother Curt" (23).

i mean, thank god her brother's name is curt, right?! so it can rhyme with spurt?

anyway. i really like the cover of this book so it's too bad i found the innards to be unreadable.

[Lindsay]

This is an ALA Quick Pick for reluctant readers for 2009. It is a emotion packed poem. I found it easy to read quickly, it has great rhythm and rymr scheme so it fun to read. Sahara the main character finds out she is pregnenat at 16 and is figuring out what to do. It is sometimes funny, sometimes sad, but it really lets us into the mind of a teenage expectant mother. Teens could use this book to help them deal with their own mistakes, or to learn about the consequesnces of their actions. It could be a great unit on teens parenting or poetry.

VOYA Codes:
5Q 4P J

[Ms. McFaul · Rating 2 out of 5]

Eh. I am sick of reading books about teenagers getting pregnant and keeping the baby after struggling with the decision. Maybe it's just me, but a single, non-rich, non-educated teen bringing ANOTHER human into the world isn't something I get excited about. I'd rather see the baby be put up for adoption, but, who am I kidding? The best decision is rarely made for the best interest of the child. While the poetry is interesting, it read too contrived, too cheesey, and really not totally worth the time.

[T. · Rating 2 out of 5]

While the concept is nice, I felt like 1.) this was an advertisement for many companies (soda, stores [Baby Gap? Limited?:] this dates it) just to satisfy a questionable rhyming scheme, 2.) she was trying too hard to be like other poetry novels out there (coughHopkinscough) and 3.) was generally weak in plot and form. The poetry would have a nice rhythm and then it would "trip" or the company name would be dropped. If that was done to make the book cooler, it actually made it worse. This title just felt like a "book to make the publisher happy."

[Megan Anderson · Rating 3 out of 5]

I generally like novels written in verse (see anything written by Ellen Hopkins <3), but this was just...bad poetry. I really liked a lot of the ideas, though, especially the list of things at the end of the "second trimester" part. I got a definite feel for the character, as well, which probably would not have shown through if the book had been written in prose. But the poetry...the rhyming...the rhyming with the same words in the same stanza or on the same page...oof, it made my head hurt. So, not the best book ever, but good if you're looking to live vicariously.

[Lynda · Rating 3 out of 5]

The kids will love this! The poetic format is not as tightly created as Ellen Hopkins' works, but it flows well. Reading it I was almost breathless with the pace. How could this not be successful when it begins with:

"It's September tenth and
I'm holding my breath
because life
and death
and everything
in-between
depends
on a stick
dipped
for less than
ten seconds
in a dish
of pee."

[Sarah · Rating 2 out of 5]

I liked the emotion in this book, but I was very disappointed by the protrayal of pregnancy. It seemed like the author had all her facts wrong when she talks about what happens in the different trimesters. If I had never been pregnant I wouldn't have noticed. However, the unforgivable fact is that she is still talking about abortion after the 5th month. I know that is not possible (at least legally). So that is why I am giving this such a dismal review.

[Sheryl · Rating 3 out of 5]

NinV. This NinV is about a young teen trying to accept that she is pregnant. The best part of this is the portrayal of her anguish of how to tell the most significant people in her life about what has happened. The mother character is very well drawn, she is self focused and can't get outside herself enough to help her daughter..very real. It is a bit to self depreciating -meaning that it seems not quite sincere and hence too didactic.

[Hannah · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book is a short, easy read. If you ever read any of the Crank books, and liked them, this would be a book that you would enjoy. Planet Pregnancy is a never ending poem. It rymes and makes complete sence. And because the book is like that, it's hard to put down. It's about this young girl who doesn't plan on getting pregnant, but does and she goes through so much. Good and bad. I'm not gonna give away the story, just find out for yourself and check it out! (:

[Breanna · Rating 5 out of 5]

What I thought about this book was I liked how it started but, not the way it ended. I would have liked to know more about her and her baby. I think this book teaches teens about life and about how hard it is to take care of a baby. More teens should read this book it gives you alot of information about Teen Pregnancy. I would like to read more books by this author bacause, she give you the exact inforamtion about life itself.