School Library Journal Review
Gr 10 Up-Jenna Lord, 16, recounts her "fairy tale with teeth and claws" from her hospital bed in Ilsa Bick's novel (Carolrhoda Books, 2012) in which severe dysfunctional behavior is the norm. Jenna has recently spent four months in a psych ward for a cutting addiction. Every adult in the teenager's life is unreliable and inadequate. She refers to her philandering, violent physician father as "psycho dad" and her mother as the "crispy critter" drunk. Jenna's grandfather has sexually abused her and her father's partner attempts to rape her. Possibly worst of all is the inappropriate behavior from a trusted, married teacher and coach twice Jenna's age. Jenna's compulsive, repetitive communication with her brother, who is on active duty in Iraq, exposes an additional tragedy. The drama goes on and on, and through it all Jenna maintains a straight A average in school. Trite statements such as "I see only you" and "I'm here for you" are interspersed throughout. The dismissive, critical portrayal of counselors and psychiatric programs may deter students who genuinely need professional intervention from seeking it. Other than mispronouncing the names of several Wisconsin towns, Kathleen McInerney's masterful performance ensures that each character and scene is easily visualized and experienced. However, the quality of the presentation does not make up for the story's flaws.-Rebecca James, Currey Ingram Academy, Brentwood, TN (c) Copyright 2012. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Horn Book Review
Sixteen-year-old Jenna narrates her history (which includes sexual abuse, scarring from a fire, self-harm, and finally a romantic relationship with her married chemistry teacher) to a detective attempting to get to the bottom of her troubled case. Like a train wreck, Jenna's narrative is impossible to look away from, but the never-ending spiral of violence and abuse can at times seem gratuitous. (c) Copyright 2012. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Kirkus Review
Tender Morsels (2008). (Fiction. 15 up)]] Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Booklist Review
At 16, Jenna Lord has suffered enough misfortune to last a lifetime. Badly burned in the fire that destroys her grandfather's house, she subsequently suffers a breakdown and is briefly institutionalized. Her homelife isn't much better: she calls her plastic-surgeon father Psycho Dad, her mother abuses alcohol, and her beloved older brother and only confidant is in Iraq. To make things even worse, she cuts herself. Jenna is figuratively drowning in disorder until she enrolls in a new school and meets her chemistry teacher, a caring man who strives to help her. Jenna's gratitude turns quickly to love and things get . . . complicated. Bick, a child psychiatrist, writes about dysfunction with a professional's insight, and she goes to great pains to create believable characters too much so, making the novel excessively long. Nevertheless, she manages to avoid the didactic and dramatizes dysfunction and disorder in ways that will attract readers and offer opportunities for classroom discussion.--Cart, Michael Copyright 2010 Booklist
