Name: California Diaries #04
ISBN: 9780590298384

Ann M. Martin

Adjusting well to her new school, Amalia Vargas makes a new group of friends and is soon living by a new set of rules, but her life spins out of control when her boyfriend will not let her break up with him. Original.

Amalia

California Diaries #04

Lorien O'Brien

** spoiler alert **
           Oh. My. Goodness. What a ride of a book! Talk about hard to read and yet I couldn't put it down. I'm shaking. What middle grade book that wasn't Harry Potter or Percy Jackson did this to me? None. Until now.

Amalia is dealing with a grade A psychotic abusive boyfriend. Who isn't even her boyfriend the whole book. As a thirteen year old she's having one hell of a time trying to figure out her feelings and what to do.

And that ENDING!!! Oh my goodness, talk about sinister! Yes, SINISTER! Wow.

I was scared going in because I read about her second book, spoiling James in this one (though from their FIRST interaction it was obvious to me), but BOY am I glad I did! I think, going from an adult perspective, that it's so important to show this kind of relationship because 1 in 3 teenage relationships are abusive. And about 1 in 3 of my friends relationships in high school and middle school were abusive in just this way. And not all of them went unscathed like Amalia did. I think I may have to put this on a list to show to my teenagers when I have them. My mom showed me things like this when I was 12 or 13 too, just in case. And both of the guys I dated probably were abusive, but I ended it way early.

A must read, I've got to say. If none of the other books are, this is a MUST READ.

California Diaries #04 Amalia

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