Synopsis: At home, Jamie is obedient, Lebanese-Muslim Jamila. At school, she’s one of the cool crowd. She works hard to keep her real identity from her friends –especially from the boy who likes her.

Review: Set in Australia and told in the first person, this novel gives readers an insight into the tensions and conflicts experienced by the teenaged Jamila as she struggles with who she is. She desperately wants to fit in and be accepted as an Aussie, while at the same time she is juggling with her Lebanese and Muslim background.

At school, the narrator is known as Jamie. She dyes her hair blond and wears blue contact lenses in the belief that her appearance will make her an acceptable of member of the in-crowd. She avoids drawing attention to herself by suppressing any views she has about the opinions and attitudes expressed by some of her classmates. When it comes to socialising outside school Jamie finds herself in a difficult position. Fearful of revealing her true identity, she is reluctant to invite her friends home. In addition, her widowed father has very definite views and rules regarding his daughter’s social life – and they do not allow her to go out unchaperoned.

In her self-imposed isolation, Jamie finds a friend on the Internet. Through a mutual sharing of problems and the supportive nature of the interaction, Jamie experiences feelings of relief at being able to be herself with her unseen correspondent. A key element in these exchanges is the suggestion made to Jamie that she should stop worrying about how others judge her. However, she still has many problems to solve, in particular how to persuade her father to let her go to her Year Ten Formal. As the story unfolds, Jamie/Jamila describes and comments on various school and home events that will be familiar territory to many teenage girls.

I enjoyed reading Ten Things I Hate About Me. The story has a lively feel about it and is at the same time amusing and thought provoking. Issues of racism, identity, and loyalty are all addressed in this novel and in doing so, gives the reader an insight into the challenges that face those who are perceived as different.

2008-04-08