Charmed

Christina Pike is a member of the Evaluation Division, Department of
Education, Government of Newfoundland and Labrador.

Isabelle “Izzy” McAfferty is a high-school student whose thoughts
are focused on one thing—becoming Cody Dillon’s girlfriend. Nothing
else matters, and her obsession forces her to make choices that she
knows are not right. When her mother leaves to go to work in a lumber
camp, Izzy’s world quickly begins to spin out of control. Forced to
live with her mother’s boyfriend, Izzy does everything she can to make
Rob the Slob’s life miserable. When her mother unexpectedly returns,
there is a blow-up and Izzy is forced to leave. She moves in with Cody,
where she smokes drugs. She then stops going to school so she can spend
more time with him. As things escalate out of control, Izzy begins to
lose herself in a world filled with prostitution, drinking, and more
drugs.

Charmed is a quick read: the chapters are short, the action unfolds
quickly, and the story is written in a blunt fashion. Although Izzy
seems to fall too easily into drugs, then prostitution, her actions
appear like a normal part of the process. The underworld she falls into
is presented in all its bleakness. Eventually Izzy does have remorse
about what has happened to her, but this seems to come too late—a
message that gives the story merit. Charmed is not a novel for the faint
of heart. Recommended with reservations.