Gabi A Girl in Pieces by Isabel Quintero

Quintero, I. (2014). Gabi, a girl in pieces. El Paso, Tejas: Cinco Puntos Press.

 Gabi A Girl in Pieces is a masterful work by debut author Isabel Quitero. This story is about Gabriela Hernandez, a girl defined by herself as a boy crazy, 'good girl' who is obsessed with delicious food. This story covers a lot of universal themes very well such as family loss, teen pregnancy, abortion, sexual identity, addiction, leaving home, and the American dream. Gabi takes a refreshing stance on fat-shaming and slut-shaming throughout the novel, with sometimes herself being the biggest culprit of both. As she becomes more an more aware of herself, her sexuality, and what she wants, she realizes the cavernous like double standard between latino boys and girls. Gabi starts on her journey in this book a few weeks before she starts her senior year when she finds out her best friend is pregnant all the way up to graduation day, even if she cannot be on the stage or in the crowd.

 While this book tackles a lot of issues, that author treats each issue with the importance that every girl in that situation would want her to. The narrator, Gabi, writes this book in a variety of forms through her journal writing: prose, poetry, and epistolary form. She admits that he diary is the only place that she can truly be herself and tell the truth. Gabi finds a love in writing poetry and using it to express herself. She is observant, but also has all of the same faults any normal teenager has which makes her very relatable and a great guide for the reader to understanding her world. 

 This was the first time for me to read this book, and it definitely lived up to the hype. When I was teaching in Texas in 2015, this book was mentioned to me by my librarian and a few of my book club students. In that year, Isabel Quitero won six awards including Amelia Bloomer list (for feminist works for children or young adults), YALSA's Quick pick top 10 and Best Fiction for young adults, and a few more awards the year before including the William C. Morris Award for debut YA novel. This book was a little slow to start, but I devoured it as I read because while I am not latina or from southern California I completely understand the change she was going through that senior year. This book made me very happy because it reminded me a lot of myself my senior year of high school and also reminded me that I wish I could have been a bit more like Gabi. This story is touching and a heartwarming story. 

 Other books that you might like based on the various themes and subjects used in Gabi A Girl in Pieces: 

  • Dumplin by Julie Murphy (experience of overweight girl, talks about fat-shaming, what it means to be a girl, and first love) 
  • Wintergirls by Laurie Halse Anderson (experience of a underweight girl, talks about fat shaming, addiction, and family loss) 
  • Artistotle and Dante: Discover the Secrets of the Universe by Benjamin Alire Sáenz (latino persepctive, LGBTQ representation, talks about the expectations of latino culture and the divide between latino boys and girls)

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