Tag Archives: rape

Sep12

No Virgin by Anne Cassidy

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No Virgin by Anne Cassidy, paperback novel, 183 pages, published by Hot Key Books in 2016.

Stacey Woods is only seventeen, but she has a lot going on in her life. Her younger sister is a teen mother, her parents are divorced and her Dad has a new partner, she is having some issues with her best friend, and school and grades are always on her mind. Stacey needs some time out, but she finds herself in a situation that leads to her being raped. This is her story.

I’ve been mulling over No Virgin for a couple of weeks since I finished reading it. It was a very powerful and confronting story. The pace was at times a little slow, and at times it was a bit hard to continue reading. I can’t say that this book was exactly enjoyable, but I’m glad that I read it.

I felt sorry for Stacey, not least because she was raped either. Her home life was difficult. I really disliked her sister, Jodie, and felt that she made Stacey’s life much harder than it needed to be. Jodie was selfish, self-centred, rude and manipulative. She was so young when she had her baby, Tyler, and she was still growing up, but that doesn’t excuse the way she treated her mum and Stacey and expected them to look after her baby whenever it suited her. Jodie wasn’t going to school or work or even helping about the house, her excuse was the baby, but she’s wasn’t dedicating her time to him, she just wanted to smoke and talk on her phone. Jodie’s attitude and behaviour placed a huge strain on Stacey and her mum. Perhaps if Stacey’s home life was better, she may not have been compelled to escape, and the situation could have been avoided.

However, irrespective of the how and why that caused Stacey to be in that cafe on the morning she met Harry, and irrespective of any choices she made leading up to the rape, it wasn’t her fault, or Jodie’s fault or her Mum’s fault. The only person at fault for a rape is the rapist. I thought No Virgin did a good job of conveying the conflicting feelings of Stacey as a victim of rape; her feelings of guilt, shame, and anger. I was pleased that the attitudes of the perpetrators were also addressed, even if they did make me angry.

No Virgin is most suitable for mature middle to upper high school students. I recommend all teens read it and talk about it. We should all be talking about rape and removing the stigmatism that goes along with it; stop the victim blaming and look at the behaviours and attitudes of the people committing these crimes to try to prevent further assaults.

*I received this book through a Goodreads First Reads Giveaway.

 

If you, or someone you know, have been affected by sexual assault, rape or domestic violence, there are a number of services designed to help you, with counselling, support and information. Below are some sites where you can find more information, and numbers for rape crisis lines within Australia.

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Jul13

Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher

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Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher, paperback novel, 288 pages, first published 2007, this edition published by Razorbill in 2011.

When Clay receives an anonymous package containing a series of cassette tapes, he is startled to discover they contain the voice of his friend and love interest, Hannah Baker. Her voice comes to him from the grave, describing and explaining the reasons behind her decision to end her own life.

Thirteen Reasons Why had been on my to read list for quite a while. But I have a confession to make; I actually watched the Netflix series before reading the book! I know, I know, I do usually read the book first, but I was sick, and sad, and the series looked interesting…. Anyway, I watched it, and I loved it.

I also liked the book, but this is one of those rare occasions where I preferred the screen version. The acting, casting and soundtrack were all good, but it was the emotiveness of the story that stuck with me. I felt Hannah becoming isolated, I felt her sadness, her resignation, and her acceptance. I also felt her parents’ devastation and the repercussions her death had on her family, on Clay and on Tony, and the ripples that moved through the wider school community. It is those left behind that are also victims of suicide, but it is rare that they have a chance to understand the reasons behind the final act.

Knowing the outcome from the start, knowing that Hannah takes her life before we even get a feel for her, made this novel an haunting memoir of a life at risk. It explored the many facets that can intertwine and connect leading to depression and suicide in teens. Even a small act can change the course of a life forever, and you can never predict what consequences will be wrought.

The Netflix series had thirteen parts; an episode for each side of each tape. That was an hour dedicated to each story Hannah tells. This allowed the characters to be fleshed out and explained in a way not usually encountered in a film or TV adaptation. There was so much more to the characters, we got to see them not only through Hannah’s eyes, but as the teens they were, and those they became. We saw how listening to the tapes affected them, and changed the course of their own lives. There was such depth to each person that the book could not explore fully since we only heard about them through Hannah’s voice on the tapes.

Inevitably there were some changes made, such as the type of store Hannah’s parents owned, the secret that Courtney wanted to keep, Clay’s relationship to the car crash victim, much bigger roles for both Hannah’s and Clay’s parents. However, I felt that the biggest change from book to screen was the timeline that Clay followed whilst listening to the tapes; in the books it’s all over in one night and told mostly in the past, in the series the story is played out over days, with interactions with all the other students involved in both the present and the past. Threads were added, exploring the way that Clay dealt not only with Hannah’s death, but also the actions that he undertakes in reaction to the other students’ stories. I found all these differences only enhanced the story and made it even more poignant.

Whether you read it or watch the series (I recommend you do both!), Thirteen Reasons Why is a story that will stay with you forever.

Thirteen Reasons Why is suitable for middle to upper high school students and above. It contains themes of depression, suicide, bullying, rape and sexual assault. It may be overly upsetting to some readers.

 

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