Janey's Girl | TheBookSeekers

Janey's Girl


School year: Year 5, Year 6, Year 7, Year 8, Year 9

No. of pages 222

Published: 2001

Great for age 7-14 years

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Fourteen-year-old Claire and her mother, Jane, are on their way across the country to visit Claire's grandmother. As they approach the family farm, Claire watches her mother become more and more anxious. Until now, she thought they had an open relationship with a healthy respect for each other's privacy. This trip unlocks the key to the many questions Claire has about their past - including the identity of her father and the reason her mother never went back home until now. Gayle Friesen's novel Janey's Girl is a coming-of-age story with a twist: Claire's mother is the one who reaches maturity.

 

 

This book is the winner of numerous awards

There are 222 pages in this book. This book was published in 2001 by Kids Can Press .

Gayle Friesen's previous novels Janey's Girl and Men of Stone have both garnered critical praise. She lives in Delta, British Columbia.

 

This book has been nominated for the following award:

Young Reader's Choice Award - Grades 4-8
This book was recognised in the Grades 4-8 category by the Young Reader's Choice Award.

Janey's Girl is a stunning debut by Gayle Friesen of Delta, B.C. The main characters are real --- interesting and imperfect. The story does not provide a neat, happy ending. It almost begs for a sequel but as Janey says at one point: ?There's no happily ever after here, Claire. How many times have I told you that?--Quill and Quire

 

In this well-written first novel, Friesen tells an involving story about a girl trying to find out about her family's past. The author is particularly adept at revealing the many emotions of the various characters. Readers should sympathize with Claire and what she goes through as she learns about her family, makes some important decisions, stands up to her overbearing mother, and comes to know her father and the half-brother she never knew she had.--School Library Journal

 

Claire's difficult decisions about her life, and her attempts to bring the old family secrets into the light, are balanced by humor and warmth in the dialogue and some fine, lovingly realized characters.--Kirkus Reviews