Coming-of-Age Novel By Massachusetts Author - Ideal for Young Adult & Teen Audiences

First novel by Massachusetts author deals with the pressures of being "cool" in high school, and what the definition of cool is. The novel also deals with the stress of sexuality as a form of peer pressure.

(PRWEB) April 4, 2005

“There’s something sadly pathetic about being a fourteen-year-old girl.” These are the first words uttered by Allison Stafford, the protagonist of A Butterfly in Winter, a new novel by Tara L. Entwistle-Clark. Entwistle-Clark’s novel centers around a young girl struggling with peer pressure, the desire to be “cool,” and her own newly discovered sexuality.

Allison spent the first fourteen years of her life in Brookdale, Vermont, a safe, comfortable town, where the most exciting thing for teenagers to do was to hang around on the town common, listening to summer band concerts. However, in the middle of her freshman year of high school, Allison’s family moves to Bethlehem, Michigan, a large, suburban area, with plenty of temptations for a teenage girl.

Allison spends her first few months in Bethlehem with Rachel and Tim, her best friend and boyfriend. When sophomore year starts, though, Allison is introduced to new people, and new pressures. Jessica, the leader of the group of popular girls whom Allison befriends, seems to find issue with everything Allison does, and especially with Rachel and Tim. Allison is advised to date Rob, the “hot” senior in her photography class instead of continuing a relationship with Tim, who is viewed as a “loser“ by Allison‘s new friends. Allison, desperate for these girls to like her, finds herself torn between what she wants and what will make everyone else happy.

Eventually, Allison forms a relationship with Rob, and the relationship begins to move faster than she would like, culminating in sexual assault. Through these events, Allison is forced to confront her own prejudices and learns about the importance of making her own decisions. Most importantly, Allison learns the value of true friendship.

If you would like more information about this work, or to schedule an interview with Mrs. Entwistle-Clark, please visit her website, http://www.taralclark.com, or e-mail her at mayburygrrl@msn.com.

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