The folks at Dairi Burger ask "Where are all the poor, ugly, awkward girls?" and Dollymix nodded in agreement.

"Anyone see a pattern? What happened to the underdogs? The awkward girls? The Margarets and the Kathleens? Why the sudden fascination with rich, vapid, and materialistic? Where success is defined as cutting other girls down and bullying? And snagging the rich popular guy?"

I've definitely shared their concern, but it got me thinking: Is the square peg really endangered? (And in theory shouldn't we be happy if "poor, ugly, and awkward" girls are a thing of the past...I mean we don't want our young sisters to suffer do we?)

I am currently reading Violet on the Runway by Melissa Walker -- a sweet story about a gangly senior in high-school-turned super-model. While Violet seems absolutely glamorous in her new identity as NYC's freshest face, she is somewhat of a wallflower back home. Her entire life she has struggled to be popular and belong. In fact, her recently discovered looks, now considered stunning, have caused her pain and embarrassment up until now. Does she count as a nerd? I think so, at least an ex-nerd. She's just not as easy to classify -- dork or "Heather." She is also disenchanted with the people she encounters in the city who actually do seem to live lives like what we are seeing in books like Gossip Girl and The Clique. They are the ugly characters, not the ones we readers are rooting for.

I was also thinking about all of the countless girls in young adult fiction, particularly science fiction, who don't belong and think aloud on the pages of their desire to "fit-in" at their schools, with their families, and neighborhoods. While Violet merely left North Carolina, some literally leave our universe in order to feel confident! Feeling uncomfortable in one's own growing and stretching adolescent skin practically defines the genre, doesn't it? I guess my point is not to worry, awkward girls still abound in young adult fiction. If they are a little more street savvy, so be it.

Posted by alli