CLP Teens Blog

Girl by Blake Nelson

The 90’s seem to be making a comeback. One can see references to the era of the “slacker” everywhere and it seems like our culture’s current interest isn’t just motivated by nostalgic, old people like me. I’ve seen plenty of teens sporting neon, flannels, beanies, dresses with tiny flower prints, and other relics from the Clinton administration. If your interest in the‘90’s goes beyond fashion, you may want to read Blake Nelson’s “Girl” published in 1994.

Andrea Marr is a typical teen living in the suburbs outside of Portland, Oregon. She gets straight A’s, she can’t wait to get her drivers license, and she likes to hang out at the mall with her best friend, Darcy. Then one day, something small but extraordinary happens. Cybil, a girl who Andrea considers her “loner” friend, comes to her house crying. Cybil has shaved her head. “I asked her why she did it and she mumbled something about Todd Sparrow and she thought it would be cool and she didn’t know why. And I was like, ‘Who’s Todd Sparrow?’” Although Andrea has never heard of Todd until now, he’s about to change her life. Todd Sparrow is the cooler and older lead singer of the band the Color Green and a fixture in the downtown Portland scene. Inspired by Todd, Cybil rejects traditional teenage experiences and aesthetics and starts her own band. As Cybil’s band gets more recognition and plays more shows, she and Andrea are drawn further away from the mindless and juvenile intricacies of high school and deeper into the thrilling and more grownup underground music scene.

This book may have been written almost 20 years ago, but you’d never notice. What it lacks in references to cell phones, the internet, and Justin Bieber, it makes up for in authenticity. Written to mimic the manner in which a teenager might narrate their own story, Nelson delivers an astonishingly accurate account of the internal life of a teenage girl. The book reads like a note I might’ve written my best friend when I was a teen. This style gives the story a real feeling of legitimacy and makes the book a rather quick read. The one thing I found disappointing is that considering how influential the Riot Grrl movement was at the time, especially in the Northwest where “Girl” takes place, I had always wished that the author would’ve had Andrea forget her inhibitions and start a band with rebellious friend, Cybil.

Review by Abby – CLP, Main