Jessica Brody
Farrar, Straus & Giroux, 2011
Brooklyn Pierce is a girl with a knack for getting into "interesting" scrapes. As a toddler, she got trapped in a mine shaft. As a fifteen year old, she ended up setting her mother's model home on fire. After getting by with just a warning (and a LOT of community service), Brooklyn begins to realize maybe her problem is her decision-making skills. Or lack thereof. In a moment of inspiration, she creates an anonymous blog where she will post the decisions or choices she encounters, and allow the public to make the decision for her. At first, things seem to be going okay - the public doesn't always chose what Brooklyn would have, but that's the point right: have someone else make (better) decisions for you? As the experiment continues however, Brooklyn starts to waver in her enthusiasm for the idea - especially as life gets trickier and trickier.
As a character, Brooklyn was seriously annoying at first. I wanted to shake her and try to make her see things the way they really are instead of how she thinks they are. But she began to grow on me, as she started waking up a little and realizing that maybe life was a little different. I enjoyed watching her work through things, and while it took a little longer than I'd have preferred - that also lends a sense of authenticity to the story. I mean really: how many of us actually learn the first time? I cringe to remember the lessons I've relearned through the years. And I love the supporting cast, especially "Heimlich". Brody did a good job of creating a high school environment without belaboring the point.
All in all, My Life Undecided is an enjoyable, quick read that also stops to make you think: What if someone else did make all your decisions for you? How would your life change? Would it change?
Book provided by my personal library.
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