When She Was Good
Publisher
Arthur A. Levine Books
Publication Year
1997
ISBN
9780590135061
Pages
228 pages
Genre
realism
Format
novel
Item Type
Fiction
Annotation
The death of her abusive, manipulative older sister prompts seventeen-year-old Em to remember their unpleasant life together, with their parents and then later on their own.
Grade Level
6-8, 9-12
Lexile Measure
650L
Diversity Topics
Family Relationships; Step parent; Family violence; Family member death; step mother; abusive sibling; abusive father; domestic abuse; physical abuse; mental abuse; death of a mother; death of a sibling; death of a sister
Main Character
female teenager
Race/Ethnicities
White
Family Formation
father, step mother, and sister
Awards
Booklist Book Review Stars, 1997
Booklist Editors' Choice: Books for Youth, 1997 Older Readers
Books for You: An Annotated Booklist for Senior High, Fourteenth Edition, 2001
Lasting Connections, 1997 Fiction
Publishers Weekly Book Review Stars, 1997 Fiction
School Library Journal Best Books, 1997
School Library Journal Book Review Stars, Grades 5 Up
School Library Journal Book Review Stars, 1997 Grades 5 Up
Senior High School Library Catalog, Sixteenth Edition, 2002
Senior High School Library Catalog, Supplement to the Fifteenth Edition, 1998
YALSA Best Books for Young Adults, 1998
Keywords
apartment; living on your own; dysfunctional family; vulnerability; coffin; feelings; internal struggle
Diversity Impact
direct
STARS Citation
Mazer, Norma Fox, "When She Was Good" (1997). Diverse Families. 443.
https://stars.library.ucf.edu/diversefamilies/443