Product Description

Your best friend hates you. The guy you liked hates you. Your entire group of friends hates you.

All because you did the right thing.

Welcome to life for Mena, whose year is starting off in the worst way possible. She's been kicked out of her church group and no one will talk to her—not even her own parents. No one except for Casey, her supersmart lab partner in science class, who's pretty funny for the most brilliant guy on earth.

And when Ms. Shepherd begins the unit on evolution, school becomes more dramatic than Mena could ever imagine . . . and her own life is about to evolve in some amazing and unexpected ways.


From the Hardcover edition.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #457066 in Books
• Published on: 2009-01-13
• Released on: 2009-01-13
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 272 pages

Features

• ISBN13: 9780440240303
• Condition: NEW
• Notes: Brand New from Publisher. No Remainder Mark.
• Click here to view our Condition Guide and Shipping Prices

From Booklist
As if it's not bad enough being ostracized by her church, her friends, and even her parents for blowing the whistle on an ugly campaign to reform a supposedly gay schoolmate, Mena finds herself embroiled in further drama when the unit on evolution comes up in high-school science class. Brande spares absolutely no sympathy for Mena's persecutors, but the tale is rescued from turning into a catchall antifundamentalist screed by providing an unusually appealing supporting cast. There's a classmate who introduces Mena not only to his unconventional family but also to the twin forbidden pleasures of kissing and Lord of the Rings. There is also a decidedly no-nonsense science teacher whose face-off with a powerful local preacher makes memorable reading. Readers will appreciate this vulnerable but ultimately resilient protagonist who sees no conflict between science and her own deeply rooted faith. Peters, John

About the Author
Robin Brande has been a trial attorney, yoga instructor, black belt, entrepreneur, community college professor, Wilderness First Responder, insurance agent, outdoor adventurer, Girl Scout leader, and Sunday school teacher. Robin Brande spent her high school years in the make-believe worlds of books and Drama, and finds that she still prefers it that way. This is her first novel.


From the Hardcover edition.

Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.
One

I knew today would be ugly. When you’re single-handedly responsible for getting your church, your pastor, and every one of your former friends and their parents sued for millions of dollars, you expect to make some enemies. Fine.

It’s just that I hoped my first day of school—of high school, thank you, which I’ve only been looking forward to my entire life—might turn out to be at least slightly better than eating live bugs. But I guess I was wrong.

I knew I’d be seeing some of these people today, but in first period already? And it has to be none other than my former best friend and the pastor’s daughter—two of the people who have cause to hate me the most.

Having Teresa and Bethany in English might not be so bad if they’d just ignore me, but at the start of class when Mr. Kuhlman called, “Mena Reece,” and I croaked out my “Here,” Teresa had to turn her blond, spiky head around and shoot me the Look of Death, and I got that combined feeling of needing to throw up and possibly pee my pants.

Think positive. Think positive.

Why didn’t my parents let me transfer? There are plenty of charter schools around, or they could have sent me to live with my aunt in Wyoming or with strangers in Alaska for all I care. But I know they want to see me punished. They pretend they’ve forgiven me, but I know deep down inside they hate me for writing that letter, just like everybody else.

It’s only been half an hour, and already I can tell this is going to be the worst day of my life. I don’t know why I’m so surprised. I knew seeing everyone today would be hard. It’s only been a month since they were all served with the lawsuit, and even though I’ve gotten plenty of hate e-mails and phone messages since then, it’s not the same as having to deal with these people in person.

I just didn’t realize I’d be so scared. It’s pathetic. What do I have to be afraid of? My conscience is clear. I didn’t do anything wrong.

No, correction: I did the right thing. And someday the truth shall set me free.

Just not, apparently, today.

Two

Okay, at least second period wasn’t so bad.

Maybe the only good thing about going to New Advantage High School (motto: “Let brilliance find you”—whatever that’s supposed to mean) is they count yoga as PE. Also archery, tai chi, and kickboxing. But I’m glad I picked yoga. If ever a girl needs an hour between English and biology to chill out and breathe deeply and try to prevent her oncoming heart attack, that’s me. Plus, I don’t know a single person in my yoga class, for which I am truly grateful.

I wasn’t sure my parents would let me take yoga. Pastor Wells was on this funk last year about how chanting during yoga or meditation is idol worship, because you’re focused on a word or an image that isn’t God and you’re basically praying to it. He said the only acceptable way to meditate is to picture the Lord in front of you, his arms wide, a gentle smile on his face. Some women from the church even started their own class to teach us how to do it.

So this morning while our teacher, Missy, led us through the pranas and the asanas, I thought about Jesus the whole time. I pictured us on a hillside together, lying back on the grass while his flock grazed all around us.

I talked Jesus’s ear off, but he smiled and let me go on. And when I had unloaded everything that was on my mind, he gave me a hug and called me Little Sister and told me everything will be all right.

It will, won’t it? It felt so good to believe it.

Toward the end of class, Missy taught us some posture that I swear can only come in handy if you ever want to shave your own back. But our reward for pretzeling was that for the last twenty minutes of class she let us lie on our mats with our eyes closed, thinking our most peaceful thoughts.

I am in the woods, beside a calm, serene lake. The birds are singing. I can smell the pine. I am completely invisible. No one can find me. I’ve never heard of Denny Pierce.

And then the bell rang. Happy time was over.

I dressed as boring as I could today—plain jeans, a faded black T-shirt—hoping it would help hide me somehow. Right. As if I could walk even two steps down the hall without someone I know recognizing me and giving me the total Hairy Eyeball.

I kept my head down and plowed through, and had almost made it to my third-period biology class without bodily harm when someone hip-checked me into the wall.

I turned to see my former—don’t know what to call him, really. Crush? Pre-boyfriend? The guy I was stupid enough to like last year and thought I might actually go out with once I’m allowed to date?—snickering and snuffling to himself. Yeah, Adam, that’s so impressive. People must think you’re really cool for tackling some girl you outweigh by a hundred pounds.

But I didn’t say anything, of course. Just mumbled, “Don’t,” and hurried into class. Way to stick up for yourself, Mena. You showed him.

And then as if having Adam in that class isn’t enough, guess who else? Teresa, of course, because apparently having her in English just isn’t enough torture. For all I know, she’s probably in all my classes except yoga, and tomorrow she’ll transfer into that, too, just to make sure I’m living my own personal hell.

I grabbed a seat as far away from her as possible, but Teresa still managed to throw me a look like would I do everyone a favor and just die.

If the day keeps going like this, I might.


From the Hardcover edition.

Customer Reviews

Thought-provoking and fun... this book is going to make a BIG splash!
This debut of author Robin Brande is an incredible start to what promises to be a very long and interesting career. How many writers would dare tackle the subject of such controversy (Darwin vs. the Church) in a first novel? That takes courage, and Robin is more than up for the challenge. She has willingly left herself open to scrutiny, yet the honest reflection in the journey of the hero (14 year old, Mena) is going to soften those blows.

From alienation, cliques, first love, tolerance, religion, sexuality and more, this book captures the struggles of teens to find their place in this world. It also challenges readers to understand why they believe what they believe -- is it blind faith based on what someone tells you to believe, or do you challenge other presuppositions and put in some sweat equity on your own so you really know WHY you believe something? Beyond that, it helps teach how to treat people who don't quite think like you do.

Personally I have not come to the same conclusion on evolution and Creationism as the author, but I don't find that to be off-putting. In fact, I appreciate the challenge and would hope that the people who read this book (especially teens) take the time to research why they would agree or disagree with the conclusions of this story to better understand their own beliefs.

Beyond the potential controversy, I had a blast reaching back into my past and remembering what it was like to be in high school. Robin has a magical way of capturing that inner 14 year old that is still alive inside of her, and making that character jump off the page. And this book isn't just for girls -- Lord of the Rings plays a heavy role (as it should in every aspect of our lives ;)!

Kudos to the writer. I can't wait for her sophomore release. The bar has been set very high!

great read!
I can usually tell how much I like a book, by how long it takes me to read it. I read "Evolution, Me & Other Freaks of Nature" in one evening. Mina, the main character, gets kicked out of her church, loses her friends, and makes her parents angry for something that's not really her fault. When a teacher starts talking about Evolution, Mina gets a chance to fight back.

I think most teenagers are fighting battles of one sort or another, so it's great to read about someone else who's fighting. Good characters, good dialogue, and a story that moves along quickly makes for a fun book.

An Intriguing Read
This, by no means, is the best book I've ever read, but it is a very interesting, thought-provoking book. Evolution delves into the inner workings of "Christian circles" and exposes some of their shortcomings. It also explores how a Christian can believe in the bible as well as evolution.

The book is about a girl named Mena who has done something that has got her banned from her church. All her "friends" won't talk to her, and her parents barely say a word to her. Mena still stands by what she did, and says it was the right thing to do. As the story unfolds Mena learns to forgive herself with the help of her new friend Casey.

***This book, at first glance, would seem to be a Christian Fiction book, but this is not just true. The lessons and controversies could be appreciated by any religion or nonreligion.***

Samfroggie