Reviews: (by author)

Oates, Joyce Carol. Freaky Green Eyes . New York : Harper Collins, 2003.

Joyce Carol Oates' second young adult book about a fictional famous family and their secrets does not disappoint. The Pierson Family inhabits an affluent waterfront home in the Pacific Northwest ; the children attend the best schools. What people don't know is that their father and famous football hero turned sportscaster, Ried Pierson, gets angry- very angry. The family is dominated by his unpredictable moods, but they act as if everything is just fine.

As the book opens, Franky Pierson, whom her mother insists on still calling Francesca, finds herself in a terrifying situation at a summer party. When she is attacked by a boy, the passive, frizzy red-headed, freckled-face teen turns into a fearless fighter. Franky's attacker shouts, "You should see your eyes! Freaky Green Eyes! You're crazy !" Relieved and in awe of her newly discovered Freaky Green Eyes personality, or Freaky for short, Franky wonders if and when this personality will emerge again. Can this built- in personal hero save her at home or will it get her into trouble? Armed with one hundred forms of denial and justifications for her parents' behavior, she has avoided looking at the bruises on her mother's wrists. But now, Franky begins an inner battle with Freaky who wants to scream the truth.

Franky has other things in her life to navigate. Her brother Todd, the oldest, mirrors whatever his Dad is feeling and lives to be his spitting image. Samantha, the youngest, clings to Franky. Her mother for years has been the perfect wife, always at her husband's side until now. She is attempting to start living life for herself. As a middle-of-the-night argument ensues, Franky listens in. "The second voice, the weaker voice. High-pitched, a woman's voice. I feel scorn for it. The deeper voice rolls over it, obliterates it. Like thunder rolling across the sky." She tells herself, "It is only thunder."

Oates' writing is robust and clear. Not only are her descriptions beautifully written, she skillfully uses imagery to reflect the family situation. The dense Seattle fog represents the denial and grimness of the emotional confusion.

Franky tells the story in first person. Her voice is poignant. Oates realistically and carefully constructs the walls Franky creates to cope with her situation. "I tasted the shame of that spectacle like something rotted and black in my mouth. And the eyes of the others, staring.  And my own eyes, staring. It hadn't been the first time. But it was the first time I'd been disciplined before strangers."

As her mother fights for her sanity and safety, she continues to breakaway from the family. Franky resents her for this. She must choose between her parents and decide what is the truth. As her brother drifts away into the abyss of family fraud, Franky realizes it is up to her to set the record straight.

The real action doesn't start until the second half, but Oates dangles just enough suspense to entice young readers to connect with Franky and keep the pages turning. I appreciated the slower beginning that explores the characters and sets up the story. When things turned tragic I was caught off guard and emotionally invested. In the end, Freaky and Frankie are melded together and Francesca is whole. The last chapter wraps up movie style with flashes of sentences summing up the plot and other details. It does wrap up a little too neatly. I would like to see a little more of Franky's inner struggling with the plot resolution. Although the ending is cliché, it still did the trick because I got teary eyed as I read the last words.

 

Shelley Moreno, December 2006

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