My Heartbeat

Freymann-Weyr, Garret. 2003. MY HEARTBEAT. New York: Penguin Group (USA), Inc. ISBN 0142400661.


CRITICAL ANALYSIS

My Heartbeat is a character-driven story about a fourteen-year-old girl, her family, and her first crush. Ellen McConnell's life is comfortable and secure. She lives in New York City with her parents and her older brother, Link. Her parents are busy, hard-working, successful people who want the best for their children. The McConnells support their children's interests and activities and work hard to provide advantages like special classes for Link, the family math genius. Ellen's father nurtures her mind by suggesting books for her to read. She believes that he is a frustrated teacher at heart. Ellen is introspective and prefers to socialize with Link and his best friend, James. They rollerblade, read books, play backgammon, and watch foreign films with subtitles. She makes it a point to be unobtrusive so that they will accept her participation.

Although she is a solid student in school, her parents are told that, "Ellen exhibits an unwillingness to form any firm social attachments" (p. 22). She resolves to make a fresh start when she moves up to Cedar Hill prep school and makes an attempt to socialize with the other girls. Conversations with her classmates usually revolve around James and Link and her close proximity to them. One day Ellen is taken aback when Laurel says that her sister Polly, "thinks it's too obvious he (James) doesn't have time for girls"(p. 26). Ellen has a fierce crush on James, but is aware that at times Link and James do act like a couple. As the story progresses, each teen struggles with their own issues of parental expectations, sexual orientation, and personal desires.

Mr. McConnell and James encourage Ellen to develop her artistic ability. This provides an outlet for her creativity and a vehicle through which she can explore her thoughts about James, Link, and her parents. By the end of the book, Ellen has grown into a young woman who is more sure of herself and her relationships with those she loves. She says of herself, "Although I'm still in the process of meeting her, I've already decided to like her" (p. 154).

AWARDS

A Michael L. Printz Honor Book
An ALA Best Book for Young Adults
A Publishers Weekly Best Book of 2002
A Booklist "Pick of the List"
A School Library Journal Best Book of 2002



REVIEW EXCERPTS
"A thoughtful approach to the many confusing signals that accompany awakening sexuality." - Publishers Weekly


"One of the standout qualities is the protagonist's fresh, vital voice." - The Horn Book

BOOK HOOK
>Visit the author's website at http://www.freymann-weyr.com/ to learn more about her and her other books.
>Read Hard Love by Ellen Wittlinger, another Printz Award Honor Book about complicated family relationships and first love. Compare the characters and their relationships to those in My Heartbeat.