Brian's Girl By Diane Hoh

Brian's Girl
By Diane Hoh

                Brian’s Girl, by Diane Hoh, is a fictional young adult book. Kate Ryan a high school senior girl has structured her life to revolve around her boyfriend, Brian Donahue. She doesn't date any boys, or hang out with friends unless he's there. She even picks her Homecoming dress in a color that Brian prefers. All this changes when he comes home from college. 

                Ever since Kate Ryan was little, she knew that Brian Donahue was the one. All she has ever known is that she’s Brian’s girl. Everyone knows that Kate and Brian are the perfect couple. In Kate's eyes, Brian is wonderful and has no flaws. Things changed after Brian and her brother Drew went to college. Kate and Brian grew apart. After not communicating and answering any of Kate’s letters, Brian finally came back from college for the Homecoming Dance with a new girl.
                At first Kate thinks that Julie is a friend of Drew's, but it becomes clear that Julie is Brian's new girlfriend. Kate didn’t know what to do. Her life revolved around Brian. She put on a strong face and tried to make Homecoming look like a group date with Brian, her brother Drew, and Julie.  She was succeeding until Brian danced with Julie and people started to ask questions. Adam Tranter the new boy at her school, recently transferred from a private school, asked Kate to dance. Kate declined stating that she had a boyfriend. She pointed to Brian who was sitting with Julie. Adam knew who Julie really was. Julie was staying at his house for the weekend as his sister's guest. He had met Julie's boyfriend (Brian) when he came to pick her up. He knew the truth and he called Kate on it.

                The first moment Kate and Adam met there was friction, because he caught her in a lie. She thought he was very opinionated and full of himself. He always seemed to be there when she would make a negative comment or mistake. She did not like this negative side of herself and Kate started to care what Adam thought. One night she went ice skating, Adam asked her to skate with him. Adam was a great skater and very easy to skate with. This made Brian jealous. She starts to like Adam, but now Brian wants her back. Ultimately, she starts to wonder if she’s really Brian’s girl.

               This book hits upon an important issue. The reaction of a teenage girl to a breakup and the depression that follows. She stops eating, showering, and sleeps all day because she feels like nothing matters. She is devastated by her break up with Brian. Those around her point out how this is a destructive behavior. She transforms her life to function independently from a boy. In other words, girls do not need a boyfriend to be happy or successful. Brian's girl is a very entertaining and enlightening book on how a teenage girl's mind functions. It has a lot of humor, angst and teenage doubt. This book is in a third person point of view. Which is great because instead of seeing the characters through one person's eyes, you actually get to see them in general and how they really are. After reading this book, I understand Kate's perspective and hope to make wise choices when I date in the future.

               To give you guys some advice, I would not suggest this book to boys (but if you want to understand girls you should read it). This book is about teenage dating and romance. This is a girl's book, written from a girl's point of view.  Once you start reading it, the story will suck you in. Brian's Girl took me about three days to read, because I could not put it down. I think anyone who reads it will love this book.