What: In Feeling Sorry for Celia, we read letters and notes both to and from Elizabeth Clarry, a high school student going through a transitional period. Her best friend since childhood (Celia) is becoming someone she doesn't recognize, and her absent father suddenly wants to reconnect with her. This was the first book I read by Jaclyn Moriarty, and I now read everything she publishes, no matter what. Her characters are relatable, her sight is clear, and her style is snappy. Also, she is hilarious.
Comparable to: Louise Rennison's Georgia Nicholson novels are similarly confessional, but where Rennison is more outrageously funny, Moriarty finds surprising depth in wry humor.
Representative quote: "They do this thing whenever I'm talking to them where they blink their mascara'd lashes very quickly as if they need to take lots of little breaks from looking at me."
You might not like it if: You have taken a vow never to touch anything that could be labeled young adult literature because you are a Grown Up and only read Grown Up books . . . unless the books have werewolves, vampires, or boy wizards.
How to get it: Moriarty is Australian, and her novels often have different titles in different countries (AUS/UK title vs. US title). Enjoy Feeling Sorry for Celia, because it is the only book by this author that has the same title in all English-speaking countries.
Connection to previous Wreckage: Ella Minnow Pea (Rec. #41) is also an epistolary novel with a smart young woman at the center.
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