The Miseducation of Cameron Post
Publisher
Balzer + Bray
Publication Year
2012
ISBN
9780062020574
Pages
470 pages
Genre
realism
Format
novel
Item Type
Fiction
Annotation
Set in rural Montana in the early 1990s, Emily M. Danforth's The Miseducation of Cameron Post is a powerful and widely acclaimed YA coming-of-age novel in the tradition of the classic Annie on My Mind. Cameron Post feels a mix of guilt and relief when her parents die in a car accident. Their deaths mean they will never learn the truth she eventually comes to: that she's gay. Orphaned, Cameron comes to live with her old-fashioned grandmother and ultraconservative aunt Ruth. There she falls in love with her best friend, a beautiful cowgirl. When she's eventually outed, her aunt sends her to God's Promise, a religious conversion camp that is supposed to "cure" her homosexuality. At the camp, Cameron comes face to face with the cost of denying her true identity.
Grade Level
9-12
Lexile Measure
1120L
Diversity Topics
Family Relationships; LGBTQ (Gender and Sexuality); Legal guardianship; Family member death; Gay/Lesbian; death of parents; lesbian; lesbian teenager; same-sex relationship; grandmother raising grandchild; aunt raising niece
Main Character
female teenager
Race/Ethnicities
White
Family Formation
aunt and grandmother
LGBTQ+
lesbian females
Awards
Amazon Editors' Picks: Best Books of the Year, 2012
Booklist Editors Choice: Books for Youth, 2012
Booklist Top 10 First Novels for Youth, 2012
Booklist Top 10 Religion and Spirituality Books for Youth, 2012
Capitol Choices: Noteworthy Books for Children and Teens, 2013
Choices, 2013
School Library Journal Best Books, 2012
YALSA Best Books for Young Adults, 2013
Tayshas High School Reading List, 2013, None
Garden State Teen Book Award, 2015, Nominee
Heartland Award for Excellence in Young Adult Literature, 2013, Nominee
William C. Morris Award, 2013, Finalist
Keywords
orphan; car accident; Montana; religion; conversion therapy; romance; summer; conservative
Diversity Impact
direct
STARS Citation
Danforth, Emily M., "The Miseducation of Cameron Post" (2012). Diverse Families. 784.
https://stars.library.ucf.edu/diversefamilies/784