Dear Parents/Teachers:
Thinking about adding Dog Girl to your pre-teen’s or teen’s summer reading list but want to know what to expect?
Firstly, Dog Girl is fictious entertainment. And although I’ve had readers go out of their way to tell me how they loved Kendall and related completely with her mental health trials, I’m not a professional in the mental health field. When a reader expresses how Kendall’s story touched their heart because they too suffer from social anxiety, I’m thrilled because it means I did my job well … BUT, Kendall’s journey is not meant to be a guideline to be followed. I’m not a behavioral therapist. I’m a writer, a graduate, a mom, an observer. I’m a watcher who writes what I see and hopefully my words make you feel something special.
Secondly, Dog Girl is a coming-of-age romance between Kendall, an awkward girl who suffers from severe social anxiety, and Ryan, a young man who seems to have everything. By the end of the story, you realize no one’s life is perfect, not even handsome Ryan. Everyone has heartaches and obstacles to overcome.
The story is told from Kendall’s first-person point of view. Quickly, you’ll notice her idiosyncrasies. The alarm on her phone constantly buzzing to keep her on schedule because structure keeps her composed. Her frantic counting when she feels anxious or her deep breathing to calm herself. She has a journal to work out her thoughts in writing. And lastly, a voice in her head she’s named Peter Parker. Her anxiety began at age eleven, and well, she loved Spiderman. Naming her anxiety after someone she loved was a coping mechanism that worked. However, at age seventeen, Peter can feel more like an inner demon ready to explode than a friend to help her cope.
Dog Girl starts at a point in Kendall’s life when she’s making great progress and managing her anxiety. She’s worked hard to raise all her grades in her classes, and she no longer skips school. But all the forward progress teeters and threatens to crumble once a video of her near-death rescue of a pit bull tied to railroad tracks goes viral. Also, heartthrob high school senior Ryan volunteers at the rescue center and his constant presence adds to her stress. For a girl with severe social anxiety, the attention is too much to handle. And how she deals with it is the story of Dog Girl. She has her ups and downs, but ultimately comes out on top … BUT, the happy ending that I wrote does not mean all of her troubles vanished and suddenly she’s cured of mental illness. I wanted the story to end at a high point in Kendall’s life. Hopefully, her life after Dog Girl will continue its positive path. That’s for the reader’s imagination to decide.
So, what else can you expect—consider a PG-13 movie. A few curse words, a little sexual referencing—they are hormonal teenagers after all—and a small amount of violence since they are rescuing abused dogs and there is a ring of criminals on the loose. It’s a teen sleuth story, as well as a contemporary romance.
Best Regards,
Gabi
