But we don't know why she is in hospital on this occasion. She was, relatively recently, released from a psychiatric ward after cutting herself. Jenna is a troubled teen - we recognise immediately that she is in some kind of hospital and quickly learn that this is not her first hospital stay. The novel is narrated by Jenna, and gets the tone of the teenage girl spot on. It presents the situation without attempting to explain it, which would be to risk trivialising it or reducing it to cliché, and leaves things open for interpretation by the reader. It takes a controversial topic - a relationship between a teacher and his pupil - and deals with it in a non-judgemental way. This isn't one of my favourite books of the year, but it is an excellent young adult read.
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