Such a Pretty Girl by Laura Wiess

Imagine the man found guilty of raping you when you were twelve was being released from prison after serving three years of a nine year sentence. Now imagine that man is your father, and your mother couldn’t be more thrilled that he’s coming home. That’s the situation for fifteen-year-old Meredith in Such a Pretty Girl. The reader follows Meredith during her frightening first encounters with her father, and glimpses the abuse she suffered through flashbacks. Andy, another victim of her father’s, has always been Meredith’s rock, but begins to break when her father is back on the scene. Meredith is fraught with conflict over preserving her own safety or putting herself in harm’s way to make sure her father can never abuse another child. This book is gripping and suspenseful from beginning to end. Students appreciate the injustice of Meredith’s situation, her resilience, and the satisfying ending.

Wiess, Laura. Such a Pretty Girl. New York: Pocket Books, 2007.