Memoirs of a Teenage Amnesiac

Reader reviewed by Kate

I loved this book. I found it funny, heart-warming, and serious all at the same time. The concept of amnesia may seem really over-used-- but this book handles it beautifully. There are actually real emotions and real situations that everyone can identify. You don't need to have amnesia to be questioning your place in life and wonder who you are. It is something universal and all a part of growing up-- which I think is what the author is trying to convey. A blank slate may seem ideal, but is it really? I loved the romances and the whole "Chief" thing made me smile every time. I loved Naomi's character and found her really easy to identify with, just like the characters in Zevin's other novel (which is wonderful as well) Elsewhere.

A must read-- i recommend it!

Reader reviewed by mlecompt

After Naomi takes a fall down the steps at her school, she can't remember anything that happened to her after age twelve. She is missing four years of her live and doesn't remember her parents' divorce, meeting her best friend, or her boyfriend. The doctors don't know if she will ever get those memories back, so Naomi starts her junior year of high school with a blank slate, only vaguely recognizing some people she knew in middle school.

As she moves through the year she beings to question how she became the person everyone else thinks she is. What did she ever see in her boyfriend, Ace? Why did she want to sit at the popular table? And what on Earth possessed her to spend hours and hours being co-head of the yearbook committee?

This book is a wonderful examination of a girl who is able, because of her amnesia, to take a step back from her life and judge herself based on her own actions. Naomi makes some good changes, but also experiences some missteps which make the story interesting and her character all the more compelling.