Dear Rachel Maddow
A Novel
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4.7 • 3 Ratings
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- $11.99
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- $11.99
Publisher Description
In Adrienne Kisner's Dear Rachel Maddow, a high school girl deals with school politics and life after her brother’s death by drafting emails to MSNBC host Rachel Maddow in this funny and heartfelt YA debut.
Brynn Haper's life has one steadying force--Rachel Maddow.
She watches her daily, and after writing to Rachel for a school project--and actually getting a response--Brynn starts drafting e-mails to Rachel but never sending them. Brynn tells Rachel about breaking up with her first serious girlfriend, about her brother Nick's death, about her passive mother and even worse stepfather, about how she's stuck in remedial courses at school and is considering dropping out.
Then Brynn is confronted with a moral dilemma. One student representative will be allowed to have a voice among the administration in the selection of a new school superintendent. Brynn's archnemesis, Adam, and ex-girlfriend, Sarah, believe only Honors students are worthy of the selection committee seat. Brynn feels all students deserve a voice. When she runs for the position, the knives are out. So she begins to ask herself: What Would Rachel Maddow Do?
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Brynn Harper, 17, a former honors student, has been relegated to the "blue room," the place where the "applied" or academically challenged juniors go. Brynn is whip smart, but dyslexia and a difficult home life make it hard for her to excel at school. As part of an assignment to write to a "celebrity hero," Brynn reaches out to MSNBC host Rachel Maddow. Brynn sees Maddow as a fighter for truth and fairness, and she begins to write drafts of diarylike emails to her, without the intention of sending them. Things get complicated for Brynn as she finds herself challenging injustice during a school election while juggling a new romance, an ex-girlfriend who may be using her, and an increasingly dangerous home situation. In her debut novel, Kisner uses the epistolary format to portray the life of a girl who has very little parental support and is seemingly falling through the cracks at school. By writing in a first-person confessional style, Kisner allows her character to express herself with blatant honesty. She also shares other characters' correspondence, offering additional insight into Brynn's personality. Revealing Brynn to be an individual with realistic insecurities, biases, and complexities, Kisner playfully explores the very human manner in which a stranger like Maddow might come to feel like a friend and confidant. Ages 13 up.
