Review of Sara Ghost, A School of The Ages Short Story

 

The School of The Ages series by Matt Posner is one of my favorite book series to date!  Sara Ghost, a STA short, is free this weekend.. go grab your copy now. Look for my review of book 3, The War against Love, in the coming weeks.

 

From Sara Ghost:
I lock the bathroom door, strip to get in the shower. My arms are specked with white lines from little cuts. But I don't cut in the house. I want to, now, really badly. I imagine cutting really deeply, like with a steak knife, leaving a puddle on the green tiles. Bleed out the fear, the worry, to make me ready for whatever horrible thing Jack Misra is going to do to me. Did I really just say "Eew" like a five-year-old who doesn't like what's on her plate? Why didn't I have guts to say, 'Dad, this guy is a pervert and he's going to rape me?' My dad's … disgusting and my mom's a beast and I'm growing into a mix of both of them. My mom's big butt and fat lips … and dusty skin, my dad's round fat face and muddy eyes with pinched eye sockets and even a little of his mustache if you look closely. I imagine taking a big butcher knife and cutting around the edges and just peeling my ugly face away and flushing it down the toilet. Even Jack Misra wouldn't want me after that. Go on, Jack. You wanted to @#$%@# a pig, but will you @#$%@# a faceless bleeding monster? *amazon.com*

 

Sara Ghost is not a ghost at all, she calls herself a ghost because she feels invisible. Filled with self loathing and inner turmoil that is only fueled by her emotionally unavailable parents, she hurts herself so she can feel. Sara is a ‘cutter’ who is dangerously close to becoming a ghost until a chance encounter at school brings two unlikely new friends into Sara’s life and her self image issues slowly begin to change. Goldberry and Simon (School of the Ages students) actually SEE her, the real her, and slowly but surely she begins to see herself as well.

It is a dark story but, there is a light at the end of the tunnel. I especially liked the way Sara learns by watching the relationship between Goldberry and Simon; how it brings about a slight change not only in how she thinks but, her confidence as well.

I think that Sara Ghost as well as Teen Guide to Sex and Relationships (another of Posner’s works) should be read by all our teens. One is fiction and the other advice, but both books can help and entertain high schoolers. Yes, this book is about a dangerously serious illness that encompasses more and more people every day. On the upside, Posner does not sensationalize the issue at all; he gives valid reasons why Sara is this way and why she hurts herself. He then gives valid reasons why she shouldn’t and, in the end, the opportunity to change her circumstance.

There is also a sneak peak at book 3, The War against Love, The School of The Ages series. There is an Author Interview with Matt Posner AND a ghost story at the end. For a 99 cents novella, he really stuffed this one full of goodies! *update, Sara Ghost is FREE via Amazon this weekend, grab your copy today!*

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B008F2R5XK/ref=tsm_1_fb_lk

For all Matt's works, check out his Amazon Author Page

http://www.amazon.com/Matt-Posner/e/B005HA0J0E/ref=sr_tc_2_0?qid=1345300077&sr=1-2-ent