Pearl, age 15, is raised by a mother who her age when she was born, and by a grandfather who treats Pearl kindly but torments his own daughter. Feeling that her mother, Lexie's, life would have been better off without her, Pearl struggles with her sense of belonging, unaware of her mother's own struggles with a second life she has kept secret from Pearl and her father for years. With simple but precise prose, the author Jo Knowles weaves an engaging and unique story in young adult fiction. Although I was bothered by the lack of physical description of most of the characters, they show distinct and developed personalities, moving the narrative along relatively quickly.

My rating is a solid three, not four, however, for several reasons. Despite the psychological and physical trauma to which Gus, the grandfather figure, subjects Lexie, Pearl is lauded for her reluctance to accept this side of her grandfather. After Lexie reveals the truth about Pearl's grandfather, Pearl admits that she can't hate him and in fact wishes her mother could see his good side. Instead of calling out this abuse apologism for what it is, Lexie tells Pearl she's proud of her, and wishes she “could have been half as thoughtful and forgiving” as her daughter when she was her age (p. 195). That’s the same age, mind, that Gus was hitting so hard she fell to the ground, burning her belongings, and barraging her with verbal abuse. It’s unclear why Lexie should have any regrets about hating a man who made her life a living hell, and sections like these conflict with another recurring message of the book, that Lexie would have been better off had she left home.

In a similar way, the presentation of the “relationship” that resulted in Pearl’s birth is also questionable. Contrasted with Lexie’s story about being raped, the sexual relationship she had, at age 15, with an adult man is presented as consensual, despite the fact that she did not enjoy it, did not know how to say no, felt compelled to participate due to extreme homophobia (internalized, familial, and societal), and was a minor at the time. There is no reflection on the fact that those sexual encounters, despite not being the raped-in-a-parking-lot narrative she presented to her father, also constitute rape. Instead, Lexie’s mother bears the brunt of the blame for “her actions,” which are not seen as an adult man’s sexual exploitation of a vulnerable teenager.

A final disappointment in the novel was the romantic storyline. Like nearly all other female young adult protagonists, Pearl’s life is incomplete until she falls for a boy. Their shared status as outcasts makes this plot development no less tired and typical.

Despite these flaws, the novel makes an important addition to young adult fiction, tackling a broad range of underexplored subjects with a strong narrative and complex characters.

Review from personal copy (final edition given to co-worker for evalutation and given to me because we'd already ordered the book for the collection)

Kinda sad, kinda expected, kinda thought the "truth" was a lot worse than it turned out to be. ( )

Like many people, I picked this up because the cover was intriguing (and reminded me of Crossed), but the book is nothing like any sort of dystopian novel. I enjoyed this book because it was a short tale, but realistic. It's the story of two friends and their totally messed up families -- and their lives can be intertwined together, both on purpose and by accident. It's also about how important it is for parents to talk to and pay attention to their kids. ( )

Knowles tells the story of Bean and Henry and one summer that changes everything in a way that will stick with you for a long time. best friends since childhood, neither Bean nor Henry know who their father's are. But when Gus, Bean's grandfather dies, they are each confronted with the idea that the truth might be closer than they ever thought.

Wonderful writing and believable characters, this is Jo Knowles at her best. ( )

When I first added Pearl to my to be read list, I initially thought it was a paranormal read without reading the summary. The cover of Pearl is deceiving since Pearl isn’t a supernatural read whatsoever…it’s contemporary. I have to remind myself all the time to not judge a book’s pages by it’s cover.

Pearl is a story about two very flawed, imperfect, and dysfunctional families, dysfunctional may be an understatement. Many secrets and lies are hidden among both families who are connected by Henry and Pearl(aka Bean). I love how close and comfortable Henry and Bean are since they’ve been best friends since they were seven and have their fathers being absent from the lives in common. They both only have each other has friends which makes them even closer.

What occurred in the pages of Pearl, I wasn’t expecting. I’m not sure what I was expecting while reading this or even beforehand, probably a love story of some sort, but that’s far from what I read. No complaining is coming from me because at certain points while reading Pearl, I was a bit stunned. I had my mouth hung open in astonishment at one point while reading Pearl, If I was to tell you what it was, it would ruin the book for you. Pearl is a book if you mention too many things, you will be very spoiled and I try to stay away from those pesky spoilers. ( )