Reading Response to a Independant Reading Book

Wintergirls by Laurie Halse Anderson
                            

Focus: My focus is how Cassie’s ghost stays and haunts Lia, and how this pushes Lia to go further into her struggle with anorexia.

          In Wintergirls Lia Overbrook and Cassie Parrish are best friends have been, as they get older they both develop self-deprecating diseases. Lia is a victim to anorexia, while Cassie deals with the demons of bulimia. They each drag each other further down afraid to face their problems on their own until Cassie breaks off their friendship, leaving Lia destroyed. Six months after the girls falling out Cassie leaves Lia thirty three messages but Lia refuses to answer still upset. The next day Lia learns that Cassie has died from purging too much in a motel downtown Lia puts together that Cassie was calling for help and feels awful and guilty. Lia’s parents divorced and consumed in their own lives don’t notice their daughter start to slip away into her old habits.

        One important observation that supports my focus is that when Cassie’s ghost is around Lia tends to fight her off by going on the stair-stepper to get Cassie to go away. I think this is an important issue because Cassie’s death in the first place is where Lia’s anorexia has started to escalate. Lia also starts to cut herself to deal with the emotional pain. I also think that Lia deals fights her demons harder when Cassie is around even when others are around.

        Another important observation I made while reading Wintergirls by Laurie Halse Anderson is when Lia does see Cassie she has moments where she wants you to see Cassie and others where she doesn’t. For example when Lia is her therapist’s office she makes a big deal of Cassie being there and then acts like nothing is wrong.

         Another important observation I made while reading this book is that Lia always two steps back when she is in the presence of Cassie. I think this is because Lia feels that if she gets to close she might be sucked back in to mess she and Cassie were in.then I realized it could’ve also been that Lia feels guilt because she didn’t answer that phone call which could’ve saved Cassie’s life and saved Lia from anorexia faster.