Fly on the Wall

by E. Lockhart

[Sam@WLABB]

Gretchen was ordinary in a place where everyone aspired to be extraordinary. She felt sort of isolated, and that isolation worsened, when her family began falling apart, and her best friend had grown distant. After making an off-handed comment about wishing she was a fly on the wall, she awakens to her own Kafka-esque metamorphosis.

I come back to Lockhart's books, time and time again, because not only does she craft some fantastic and witty characters, she does a great job of approaching familiar things in interesting ways. If you take away the time Gretchen spent as a fly, this is a fairly common story about a teen trying to fit in and figure things out for herself. Gretchen was young, only 16, and she still had a lot to learn. However, she mostly kept herself closed off, and failed to make those connections with people, which allow you to see them, understand them, and be understood by them.

Thus began her life as a fly on the wall. This was Gretchen gaining a new perspective. She thought boys were such an enigma, but after a week of closely observing them, she began to see that they shared many of her same issues and fears. She felt isolated and alone, and she discovered that someone had seen her. Gretchen lacked the courage to act on her crush or even to wear that short skirt, only to find out that even some of the most popular and confident boys suffered body image and other self esteem issues. She gained a new respect for some of her classmates, while adjusting her opinion of others. This experience was a kick start for her, to push herself a bit, and to open her eyes and ears to those around her.

Gretchen may have started out as a bit of a negative Nelly, but she emerged from her life as a vermin with a new attitude and a new point of view. This story just shows how much can be accomplished by just changing your perspective.

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