What If Jane Eyre Fell In Love With A Rock Star?

19-year-old Jane’s parents are dead after a car crash.  She has to drop out of school and take a nanny job to survive.  The agency places her with rock star, Nico Rathburn, because she cares little for pop culture.  Jane becomes caregiver to his daughter, Maddy.  Nico seems puzzled by Jane’s simplicity and non-groupie behavior.  Jane really doesn’t know what to think of Nico. If you know the story of Jane Eyre than you will not be surprised by the rest of the plot.  April Lindner follows Charlotte Bronte’s story pretty faithfully.  Settings are one of the things I love most about books and I was pulled right in.  I love how the author describes the Thornfield Park, the beautiful grounds and the barn where Nico’s band rehearsed. I very much enjoyed this book.  But mostly it was because of the mood and feeling I had while reading it.  I felt like I was at Thornfield Park in the beautiful fields feeling all the same feelings as Jane.  I got lost in her world.

Some ideas for discussing with teens:

Would you want to be a nanny for a celebrity?  If so, which one?

Does Nico remind you of any rock stars you like?

Discuss how Jane is not into popular culture.  What do you think that would be like?

Compare Jane Moore with Charlotte Bronte’s Jane Eyre.

Why do you think Nico is drawn to Jane?

Discuss the tenderness between Nico and Bibi, even though she repeatedly tries to kill him.

Discuss now Nico wants to dress Jane up.  Talk about her reaction to that.

When Jane finds out about Bibi, she runs.  What would you have done?

Talk about how Nico changed after his injury.

Nico and Jane talked about getting married shortly after becoming a couple.  Talk about celebrity marriages that happen quickly and end quickly.  Why do you think this happens?

Talk about Jane’s relationship with River.  How would that relationship differ from the one with Nico?

Talk about Jane’s relationship with her mother and how she compared her to her sister Jenna.

Chilling, Disturbing And Brilliant Modern Day Retelling Of The Scarlet Letter

Every so often I come across a book that grips me so tightly that I don’t want it to end.  When She Woke by Hillary Jordan is extraordinary!  This is technically not a teen book; however it is an appropriate read for a more mature teen, especially one who has read The Scarlet Letter.  In fact, I highly recommend teaching them as a paired text.  This book explores faith, the dangers of mixing church and state, human rights, and love.  Hannah’s story begins as she wakes up from a procedure called chroming which changes her skin to bright red.  Criminals now become Chromes; you can see their crime by the color of their skin.  She must spend 30 days in a room of mirrors so she can contemplate her fate.  Her 30 day confinement is also broadcast as a type of reality show, a modern day stockade if you will.  Once she is released the color of her skin will make her a target for discrimination, violence and likely death before her sentence is up.  Her crime is the murder.  She had an abortion rather than bring shame on the father, a powerful and famous man.  Conservative Christian views are the law of this dystopian version of the United States.  Scorned by her mother,  Hannah can only go to a half way house of sorts where a minister and his wife will rehabilitate her.  From there her journey runs the gamut of sheer terror, unexpected kindness and self discovery.  My favorite moment in the book is Hannah’s encounter with Reverend Easter.  I found that section deeply moving.  This book is riveting and will keep the reading thinking long after the last page is finished.

Some ideas for discussing with teens:

Compare the Hester’s stockade of The Scarlet Letter to the reality show confinement of Hannah.

If that was a reality show they had access to, would they watch it?

Talk about how government changed once religion took a large role.  Discuss church and state.  How do they feel about separation of church and state or should they be together?

Do they feel chroming is a just punishment?

Talk about how Hannah protected her lover.  What would you have done?

Discuss this passage: “Punishment was meted out in other ways; in increments of solitude, monotony and, harshest of all, self-reflection, both figurative and literal.  She hadn’t yet seen the mirrors, but she could feel them shimmering at the edges of her awareness, waiting to show her what she’d become.”

Talk about her encounter with Reverend Easter. 

Discuss her last meeting with Aidan.  How do you feel about his announcement after they met?

Discuss the Novemberists?  Do you consider them terrorists or freedom fighters? 

What do you think will happen to Hannah now?