Genre 3 - Poetry - What My Mother Doesn't Know

1. Bibliography
Sones, Sonya. 2001. What my mother doesn't know. New York: Simon and Schuster Books for Young Readers. ISBN 9780689841149

2. Plot Summary
In this verse novel, Sones explores all the joys and heartaches of being a teenage girl. From boyfriends to best friends to parents, this book tells the story of Sophie Stein, an almost fifteen year old girl living in Massachusetts. What My Mother Doesn't Know reads almost like a diary of Sophie's roller coaster of experiences throughout her freshman year of high school.

3. Analysis
Sones's candid subject matter combined with her definitive teenage voice give this book an irresistible charm. From the first poem of the book, the reader can tell exactly who Sophie is:

"But Dylan calls me Sapphire.
He says it's because of my eyes.
I love the way his voice sounds
when he says it.
Sapphire.
I like whispering it to myself.
His name for me.
Sapphire.
It's like the secret password
to my heart."

Sones paints a clear picture in free verse of Sophie's love crazed desires with several boys, her disinterested parents, and her brilliant friendship with Rachel and Grace. The compilation comes to a satisfying conclusion when Sophie finally uncovers her "masked man" in the form of the school laughing stock, Murphy. I especially enjoyed the staccato style and assonance of "Hair Prayer," an ode to Murphy's hand in Sophie's hair. At the end of the book when Sophie decides to give in and fully accept Murphy as her boyfriend, little sketches of their favorite painting, Renoir's Le Bal a Bougival, appear in the lower right corner signifying Sophie's realization about the difference between love and lust.

Any teen or tweenaged girl as well as most grown women will relate to these heartfelt poems about love and loss, growing up, and, of course, going behind our mothers' backs. Sones's poignant look at teenage life captivates the reader to keep reading just one more poem. This book is sure to be a favorite to be passed down from mother to daughter or friend to friend as a tribute to our days gone by.

4. Review Excerpts
Publishers Weekly Starred Review -"...Sophie's honest and earthy story feels destined to captivate a young female audience, avid and reluctant readers alike."
School Library Journal - "Sones is a bright, perceptive writer who digs deeply into her protagonist's soul."
Booklist Starred Review - "Sophie's voice is colloquial and intimate, and the discoveries she makes are beyond formula, even while they are as sweetly romantic as popular song."

5. Connections
*This book could definitely be utilized by a school counselor when dealing with students' feelings. Girls should be urged to read the book and respond to Sones's poems with stories of their own. Then, the English teacher can have the students turn their responses into their own free verse poems.
*Boys can be urged to read the sequel to What My Mother Doesn't Know, What My Girlfriend Doesn't Know ISBN 9780689876035. This book is written from Murphy's, Sophies's new boyfriend's, point of view. Then the same collaboration between counselor and English teacher can take place.