Thursday, May 17, 2012

Dirty Little Secrets: A Review




Title: Dirty Little Secrets
Author: C. J. Omololu
Publication Date: Feb. 2, 2010
Publisher: Walker Childrens
Source: Library


Everyone has a secret. But Lucy’s is bigger and dirtier than most. It’s one she’s been hiding for years—that her mom’s out-of-control hoarding has turned their lives into a world of garbage and shame. She’s managed to keep her home life hidden from her best friend and her crush, knowing they’d be disgusted by the truth. So, when her mom dies suddenly in their home, Lucy hesitates to call 911 because revealing their way of life would make her future unbearable—and she begins her two-day plan to set her life right.

Genre: Issue driven, daughter of a hoarder, contemporary YA

Cover: A little haunting, fitting for the macabre, tragic, yet realistic subject matter

Plot: So real. It moved. You felt for her, and my biggest test for if a plot worked is seeing whether or not I want to hold someone’s ear hostage and tell them every single detail about what happened. That is what happened with this book. It’s short, not sweet, realistic, dark, and moving. The pages turned themselves as you felt for Lucy, and it wasn’t just from the problems that arise with being the daughter of a hoarder; it was about the psychological ripple effect hoarding has on those who didn’t chose to live the life. And I would say more, but I will so not be accused of giving things away! :)

Romantic Element: It was present. It helped move the plot but wasn’t the focus. It was a motivator—an added stake

Overall: This book is a short read, and that read is worth it. I like that it doesn’t sugarcoat. It doesn’t pretty anything up. You end up wanting to read it because it feels like this story could and probably has happened. It’s like a new insight into untapped content—or really a new perspective on content.

Sooo? Have you read it? Are you going to? You should. Let me know below!

And, for the song to write by, I consulted the author, C.J. led me to her soundtrack, and I chose the following: “Island in the Sun” by Weezer.  :) <3




6 comments:

  1. My dad is a hoarder. As soon as you wrote those words above, I knew instantly what this child went through and will continue to go through. It's such destructive behavior and represents utter stagnation.

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  2. this sounds intriguing. I've always been fascinated with the whole hoarding thing and the ramifications when it comes to kids.

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  3. Wow. This sounds like such an intense read! I'll definitely have to check it out.

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