Annotation: Vera juggles the demands of her senior year of high school, her job and her personal relationships, which some times leads her to drink from a bottle of vodka she keeps stashed under the seat of her car. All the while Vera is haunted by the presence of her dear friend Charley who’s death is presented as a mystery gradually revealed throughout the story.
Justification for Nomination: The first aspect that grabbed me in reading Please Ignore Vera Dietz is the authentic voice of the story’s main character Vera. Vera is a loner who’s concerned about getting good grades to finish her senior year and saving up some money for college by delivering pizza. She’d be perfectly happy focusing on these two things and keeping to herself. But some issues in her life have made it impossible for her to have her druthers to be ignored. There’s her father who drinks too much after being estranged by Vera’s mother, a stripper in search of a better life elsewhere. There’s Jenny Flick, the girl from school who was jealous of Charley and who still has it in for Vera. There’s James the older man at work who Vera likes but is unsure how far she should go with him. And through it all is the memory or ghost of her friend Charley, the boy next door who’s own problems with his family led him to become involved with a sexual deviant and then to Charley’s own mysterious death. Even though Vera struggles with all of these complex issues she does so with a certain confidence that reassures us as we journey with Vera that somehow we will get through this even if everything doesn't turn out okay. Through the book we’re positioned as a sort of confidant, a best friend that Vera seeks but only seems to fleetingly find within the pages of her story. I could see this being a great fit for a teen reader similarly struggling to find the language to express him/herself. In reading this book we can’t help but feel that we’ve developed a relationship with Vera and as we ride shotgun with her we can learn humor, resilience, independence, responsibility and confidence.
A. S. King must also be credited for how the book creatively switches point of view sometimes to Charley’s ghost or to Vera’s father there’s even a couple of chapters told from the perspective of the local mall where a tragic scene of a pet store arson takes place. it also makes creative use of flowcharts (seemingly a study technique of Vera’s) that’s crosses over into other aspects of her life. From organizing the thought process of whether to hit the snooze alarm to avoiding the destiny of family curses the flowcharts in the book are an inventive way for us to get yet another look inside the mind of Vera.
This book also maintains a great balance in theme. Even though there is a gambit of adult issues addressed in this book, Vera’s character, though far from perfect, is able to delve into problematic issues like drinking and sexuality with candor and authenticity. Sure she makes mistakes but she’s also thoughtful of cause and effect in her life. She’s not one to be victimized and so she takes responsibility and attempts to change or resolve issues in her life entirely on her own if she has to. We can’t help but admire Vera and hope to take a little of her strength with us after finishing her story.
Although this book contains a ghost I’m still considering it a realistic fiction. Another remarkable technique of King is that the Ghost of Charley can be interpreted as either a figment of Vera’s imagination or as the actual spirit of Charley. Chapters from the point of view of Charley’s ghost strongly pull us to think that his spirit is a real entity, yet still leaves some room for speculation and either interpretation works fine. Aside from Charley’s ghost, every other aspect of the novel rings true. I’m only now getting experience in reading YA novels so I’m no expert, but King was able to make me, a white male in his 40s, feel like Vera Deitz’s BFF – impressive to say the least and, I suspect, exemplary of the genre.
Genre of Catalog: Realistic Fiction, Problem Novel, Mystery, Michael L. Printz Award honor book 2011.
I also read this book and nominated it for our award. I love the genuine thoughts from Vera and I loved that no matter what choices she made, we could see her process and always knew she had good intentions, even when we could see it was not the best choice. I also thought of Charlie as a figment of Vera's subconscious. She knew him so well, so it is highly realistic for her to sense him guiding her, whether it was a real ghost or not. Great review! We may need to team together later on in the award process.
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