Stargirl

Spinelli, Jerry. Stargirl. Book 1 of the Stargirl series. 288p. 2007. ISBN 978-0-3759-1375-4. Available at FIC SPI on the library shelves.

Mica High School in the Arizona desert has never seen anything quite like this. Homeschooled for years, Stargirl is now attending high school, and her very presence throws everything into question. A non-conformist in every way, Stargirl wears strange clothes, always places a tablecloth, a vase, and a flower on her desk, and sings happy birthday songs to people she does not know on her ukulele.

At first, people don’t know what to make of her. She’s so different. Leo Borlock is not sure why, but he finds himself attracted to her. And she, clearly, also likes him. And as the school year progresses, people begin to change in subtle ways, expressing their individuality. Stargirl’s random acts of kindness and empathy begins to rub off each and every person at Mica.

But Stargirl’s difference becomes her undoing, and as the school begins to shun her, Leo finds himself in a predicament. Can he hang on by Stargirl and celebrate her difference, or will he try to make her normal, destroying the very thing that makes her unique?

The story continues in Love, Stargirl, which is told from Stargirl’s perspective the year after she left Arizona. Fans of Star Girl should look at When You Reach Me, another quirky tale of a girl marching to the beat of her own drum.