The Luckiest Girl, by Beverly Cleary - Realistic Fiction

I was a girl, and still am a girl, who loved a cute little love story in my younger days. Therefore, when I saw The Luckiest Girl, by Beverly Cleary, I jumped at the chance to read it. It was actually the first book that I selected for my Children’s Literature class journal; I just delayed in journaling on it. With Beverly Cleary being such a “school-wide” name all over the nation, I figured that I was in for some good reading. I wasn’t disappointed and this reading allowed me to take a trip down memory lane in high school once again. However, I have definitely changed since my high school years.

Shelley is an adventurous eleventh-grader who is about to begin the school year with the same old occurrences in her life (same friends, same boyfriend, same Saturday evening activities, etc.) when she gets the offer to visit her mother’s college roommate’s family in California for the year. Shelley jumps at the chance and her parents reluctantly are persuaded. She encounters a different life in California with her new adopted family, new friends at San Sebastian High School, and a new boyfriend or two. The reader gets a chance to see Shelley grow and mature throughout the year and discover things about herself that she wouldn’t have discovered if she had stayed at home and lived the same life in Portland, Oregon.

I was impressed with the teenage romance, coming of age story. I would definitely be able to rate this book a “G” and not worry about my middle-school student or high school student reading about a lot of sexual language and innuendos. Life is very happy for Shelley and most of the other students at San Sebastian High. Everyone is very polite, courteous, and welcoming. I do pause here to ponder the fact that this is really not very much like high schools today, however. Unfortunately, in realistic high schools I can say that there would be a lot more gossip, slander, and hostility to a new girl who comes in and sweeps the “best looking guy” and star of the basketball team off his feet. In that light, I really wouldn’t say that this book met its goal of realistic fiction.

I also noted that Shelley seemed to depend on boys to make her happy. When she was at home she had Jack as a comfortable companion to date her on Saturday nights. She desired for more excitement in a boyfriend and moved onto Phillip, star of the basketball team. However, when both Phillip and Shelley began failing Biology, they have to call their “love” to a halt until they got their grades up. This is when Shelley begins to feel miserable at San Sebastian and in need of a boy. Finally, she begins to date Harvey, who was an admirer all along. She leaves California at the end of the year thinking that she is in love with Harvey. Even with all this dating, the only physical touching that occurs is a sweet kiss shared between Harvey and Shelley at the end of the year. Once again, however, I do not think that this is very realistic to today’s teenagers. I was a teenager just ten years ago and remember how very much “in love” I could fall and I very specifically remember girls getting pregnant in high school. That is a far cry from a sweet end-of-the-year kiss. I also didn’t like the characteristic of Shelley that seemed to feel like she needed a boyfriend in order to enjoy her life and free time. Girls these days need to know that they can succeed without a boyfriend and should tell the cute guy in Biology class to hush while they learn enough to pass, if not ace, the exams.

I guess on after thought, I enjoyed the reading of this light-hearted story, but some of the characteristics of the main character Shelley really bothered me. I didn’t feel like she was bold enough and truly courageous enough to be a role model for young girls today. Sure, she was sweet and decided to spend a whole year of her life in a completely different state with a different family, but she showed neediness wherever she went. Her courageous and brave character lasted for about as long as it took her to travel in the airplane from Portland, Oregon to San Sebastian, California. I like the female characters that take the bull by the horns, so to say, and don’t depend on a boy to lead them around.