Pieces of Me by Charlotte Gingras

Come to me, come to me.
Gather the pieces of me that I've lost,
The pieces of me all shattered and scattered.
Jagged shards of china strewn all about.
Here I am waiting. Come find me.
~ The Lullaby of Lost Pieces

Usually, when I read a novel that's been translated, I'm disappointed. The poetry is inevitably lost.. or, at the very least, become stilted and awkward. Not so with Charlotte Gingras' novel Pieces of Me. Originally published in French as La Liberté? Connais pas..., it went on to win the Governor General's award (in French) and has quickly been picking up English fans along the way.

The story revolves around Mira(belle), who is abandoned by her father at a young age and is forced to live with her "half-mad" mother. She has no friends and only wears black. From the opening line (I'm almost fifteen and I have no friends."), Gingras lays out her unflinching portrayal of a lonely teenaged girl who is trying to cope with all the normal teen issues and some very abnormal ones. A vibrant, faceted cast of characters surround Mira, strangely aligning to help our fledgling heroine not only understand the world around her but to encourage her to live within it fully: there's Cath, the full-of-life new girl; the Birdman/art teacher; Paule, the blind therapist; her ex/father and mildly insane mother; the string of ill-fated relationships ... it's amazing the amount of breadth and scope Gingras is able to stuff into a mere 144 pages. I read it in one sitting and it only took about three hours.

This is a wonderful read for teens and adults alike. Not to mention librarians, as Mira is a avid proponent and vivid example of the therapeutic nature of books.