King, A. S. (2010). Please ignore Vera Dietz. New York, NY: Alfred A. Knopf.
Vera Dietz has a lot going on in her life right now. Her ex-best-friend, Charlie, has just died in what people believe was a fire he started, her mother has been gone from her life since she was 12, she is a closet alcoholic, she and her dad have to work out their relationship together, and she keeps seeing Charlie's ghost who asks her to clear his name on the fire incident. It is through flashbacks that we see how Vera's friendship with Charlie started strong, built on strength they gave each other through helping each other get through their family issues, and ended when Charlie began hanging out and dating one of the girls from "the wrong-crowd." Jenny, Charlie's girlfriend, begins to convince Charlie that Vera is bad and he starts to change. She even convinces him to have sex on video so that they can sell it to a perverted guy, one that Charlie has already sold used underwear to, for money. When he doesn't want to do it anymore, Jenny threatens to set the pet store on fire and kill him. He goes to Vera for help, but she refuses to help him at first, but when she goes to the pet store all she see is Jenny and no Charlie, so she figures he didn't show up. In the end, Vera decides that she must confess what ultimately killed Charlie, and who is at fault for the fire. Vera and her father reconcile and look forward to taking some time off for themselves.
Please Ignore Vera Dietz is filled with page-turning drama and suspense. Although it does discuss serious topics such as the relationship between Charlie and the perverted man, sex and money, verbal abuse, domestic violence, and alcoholism, it is still a text that can serve great purpose for young adults. It also shows the positivity of telling the truth to save those you care about and how building a relationship on honesty and trust can make your life better.
I rate this book a 5 out of 5 stars!
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