Not My Daughter

Not My Daughter
by Barbara Delinsky

When Susan Tate's seventeen-year-old daughter, Lily, announces she is pregnant, Susan is stunned. A single mother, she has struggled to do everything right. She sees the pregnancy as an unimaginable tragedy for both Lily and herself.

Then comes word of two more pregnancies among high school juniors who happen to be Lily's best friends-and the town turns to talk of a pact. As fingers start pointing, the most ardent criticism is directed at Susan. As principal of the high school, she has always been held up as a role model of hard work and core values. Now her detractors accuse her of being a lax mother, perhaps not worthy of the job of shepherding impressionable students. As Susan struggles with the implications of her daughter's pregnancy, her job, financial independence, and long-fought-for dreams are all at risk.

The emotional ties between mothers and daughters are stretched to breaking in this emotionally wrenching story of love and forgiveness. Once again, Barbara Delinsky has given us a powerful novel, one that asks a central question: What does it take to be a good mother?

** spoiler alert ** This is actually a very good book. Everything that the people who wrote the book blurbs said it would be, but it left me wanting more and it left me wanting to change certain things about it. My list of things to change about it, goes like this.

1. i wish there was more elaboration on Robbie's character. I feel like I really didn't know him at all, when I felt like I really knew Susan.
2. I wish that they focused on the other pregnancies and not just Lily's mostly.
3. I wish that the entire book wasn't about whether Susan would be fired or not.
4. Abby wasn't as big a part of the story as it seemed she was supposed to be.

So a lot of things about this book failed for me, but the things that kept me reading were:

1. Hoping for reconcilliation for Susan and her mother, which is what we got.
2. Hoping that Robbie would be developed more. (he wasn't.)
3. and the love between Susan and Lily, and between Lily and her Unborn son.


Ultimately, there were more things that I disliked than liked about this book...
but...maybe if a book makes you angry, or feel anything at all for that matter, it has to be good. right?

So, in light of all the likes and dislikes, I give this book : 3 stars ***