| Dating & Sex |
| Social Themes |
| Young Adult Fiction |
Summary
Summary
Jamie and Elaine have been best friends forever, and now they're finally juniors in high school. Elaine has a steady boyfriend, and Jamie could have one--if she'd just open her eyes and see Paul. But Jamie has a bigger problem to worry about. Then Elaine gets "in trouble"--something they thought only happened to "other" girls. Are there any good choices for a girl in trouble?
In Trouble is a novel born of author Ellen Levine's interviews with women who came of age in the late 1950s and early 1960s, including those who knew what it was like to be a teen facing a horrible choice. In the decades before Roe v. Wade, a young woman "in trouble" had very few options--and all of them meant shame, isolation, and maybe much worse. Jamie and Elaine's stories are just two among the thousands of stories of teenagers facing unplanned pregnancies.
Reviews (5)
School Library Journal Review
Gr 9 Up-It is difficult today to imagine a time when a pregnant teen would be considered a pariah. But in 1956, that was the case. Jamie and Elaine are high school juniors with plans to attend college. Both find themselves pregnant; Elaine by her college boyfriend, and Jamie as a result of a date rape. Elaine is Catholic; even if abortion were legal, she would not have one. Her parents decide that she will go to a Catholic home, have the baby, and give it up for adoption. Elaine wants to keep her baby and is sure that her boyfriend will stop ignoring her and marry her. Jamie does not share her friend's optimism. So involved is she in trying to help Elaine consider other options and in dealing with her father's return to his family after being imprisoned for several years for his political views that it takes from March, when the story begins, too late May for her to realize that she, also, is pregnant, but she is able to use contacts that allow her to have an abortion. In contrast to its subject matter, which is based on interviews with numerous women who were pregnant teens in the 1950s, the novel has an innocence that illustrates but does not scrutinize the dangers of trying to end a pregnancy during that time. The author's notes and acknowledgments draw together the past and present, making the book a good choice for required reading in sociology or advanced American history classes. In Trouble should be available in every library serving young adults.-Suanne Roush, Osceola High School, Seminole, FL (c) Copyright 2011. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Publisher's Weekly Review
A film noir atmosphere weaves through this unabashedly political novel that addresses issues of abortion and free speech. Levine (Henry's Freedom Box) evokes nostalgia for an era of multigenerational families living together, Automats, soda fountains, and Bogart films, while emphasizing the power wielded by social taboos. Sixteen-year-old Jamie tells the parallel stories of two teenage pregnancies in McCarthy-era New York City and her father's recent imprisonment for political activism. In a first-person narrative that focuses on Jamie's feelings of helplessness and anger, she reports occasional thoughts or memories that frighten her as if writing a screenplay: "Tight close-up on striped shirt with bull's-eye on back." When her friend Elaine gets pregnant by her boyfriend, she imagines they will get married, though Elaine's ashamed Catholic parents have other ideas. Jamie's pregnancy results from a violent rape; terrified of confiding in her family, she attempts various "remedies," such as drinking vodka and throwing herself down the stairs. Encouraging historical awareness and personal empowerment, an author's note compares 1956 attitudes about women and abortion with the present, noting that obtaining a legal abortion has become increasingly difficult. A gripping, relevant read. Ages 12-up. (Sept.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.
Horn Book Review
It's 1956, and Jamie's best friend Elaine confides that she is pregnant. Jamie's quest to find out what options might be available for Elaine (including an illegal abortion) becomes even more pressing as she realizes she is in the same fix. Misplaced love, date rape, and sexual ignorance all figure into this sympathetic but didactic novel about the importance of reproductive choice. (c) Copyright 2012. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Kirkus Review
Teen pregnancy long before16 and Pregnant.It's 1956, and Jamie's best friend Elaine is "in trouble," code for those teenage girls who begin wearing loose clothing and then suddenly disappear to live with a mysterious "aunt" for a while. Jamie is concerned for Elaine, but she also has problems of her own. Her father has just returned home after being jailed for his refusal to name names during the McCarthy hearings, and Jamie's relationship with him is still fragile. She's also hiding a secret equal to Elaine's: While staying in New York City with her older cousin Lois, she was date raped by one of Lois' friends and is too ashamed to tell anyone what happened. But when Jamie realizes that she's skipped a period, she suddenly finds herself in just as much "trouble" as Elaine. Now she has to make a choice that Levine makes abundantly clear was much harder for teenage girls in the '50s than it is today. Daring subject aside, the author breaks little new ground in this typical problem novel (a stand-alone continuation of 2005'sCatch a Tiger by the Toe). The dialogue-heavy prose, short length and always-timely topic will attract reluctant readers, and the familiarity of the form will carry them through.Valuable insight into a time when abortions were illegal and pregnant teenagers were hidden away instead of filmed for a reality TV show. (author's note)(Historical fiction. 12-15)]] Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Booklist Review
Return to the 1950s, when McCarthy loomed large, abortion was illegal, and birth control meant counting days or pulling out. Sixteen-year-old Jamie and her best friend, Elaine, are both pregnant but under different circumstances. Elaine is certain Neil loves her and eventually will marry her; Jamie cannot bear to remember her first time. Elaine is sent to a wage home (home for unwed mothers), and Jamie opts for a D and C. While Elaine continues her naive belief in her boyfriend until the bitter end, Jamie makes her decision in the midst of family support and understanding. Levine has broached a delicate subject in the hope that readers will reflect upon what life was like for women before Roe v. Wade and where our nation could be headed if we refuse to learn from our history. Yes, In Trouble is didactic, but it would be nearly impossible to write this story without being so. It's also a stark reminder of the more things change, the more they stay the same.--Bradburn, Frances Copyright 2010 Booklist