Book Review: Invisible Girl!

Release Date: May 27, 2010


Title: Invisible Girl


Author: Mary Hanlon Stone


Publisher: Philomel Books


Format: Hardcover, 288 pages






From the inside flap:
When poor Boston girl Stephanie is abandoned by her abusive mother and taken in by Annie’s Beverly Hills family, she feels anything but home. Her dark complexion and accent stick out like a sore thumb in the golden-hued world of blondes and extravagance. These are girls who seem to live life in fastforward, while Stephanie is stuck on pause. Yet when a new rival moves to town, threatening Annie’s queen-bee status, Stephanie finds herself taking sides in a battle she never even knew existed, and that feeling invisible is a wound that can only be healed by standing up for who she is. Brilliant newcomer Mary Hanlon Stone delivers a compulsively readable insider’s view of growing up in a world where money and privilege don’t always glitter.

Brent's opinion of the novel:
While reading this novel, there is one word I kept catching myself saying. "Awww." Whether it was "Aww I can't believe Stephanie has to go through that" or "Aww I love Stephanie" or "Aww that girl is such a bitch". This is one of those books where you find yourself going through a full range of emotions. Half of the time I was mad at some of the characters, and the other half I was in love with some of them. Half of the time I was feeling so bad for Stephanie, all sad and stuff, and then half of the time I was all giddy that Stephanie had found a friend. I really, really liked this book, and I'm very surprised this is a debut novel from Mary Hanlon Stone, you would've thought that she had been a big-time author, perfecting the craft for many years. Like a Deb Caletti novel of self-discovery, Mary Hanlon Stone writes about how hard it is to forget the tragic events of our lives, and how to forgive the ones who caused them. I love it when I actually learn something from a novel, like something moral, not educational. And from this novel, I have learned that trying to be something you're not is pointless, and that as long as you stay true to who you are, everything will fall in place. I read books to connect with the characters, to connect with the authors, to experience things I wouldn't normally experience. And I'm so glad to say that I did all three of those with INVISIBLE GIRL. Though the topic of child abuse is very present in this novel, the majority of INVISBLE GIRL is about what happens after the abuse. It's hard to say "I recommend this novel to people who love to read (insert genre here:_______)" because this book is very individual. I'm just going to end this review saying: Read INVISIBLE GIRL. You won't feel like it's time wasted, trust me. I couldn't stop smiling when Mary told me she has another book coming out next spring, because she is on my "authors to look out for" list. (:

Overall Rating: Four and a half Stars!