Housewife Blues and Chihuahua Stories

Book Info
Kindle Edition, 242 pages
Published November 1st 2011 by Flux
original title Faking Faith
ASIN B005QR9SSM
edition language English
setting Illinois (United States)
other editions (3)
Source:Kindle version borrowed from Public Library

Book Buy Links
Amazon
B&N

BOOK SYNOPSIS

After a humiliating “sexting” incident involving a hot and popular senior, seventeen-year-old Dylan has become a social outcast—harassed, ignored, and estranged from her two best friends.

When Dylan discovers the blogs of homeschooled fundamentalist Christian girls, she’s fascinated by their old-fashioned conversation themes, like practicing submission to one’s future husband. Blogging as Faith, her devout alter ego, Dylan befriends Abigail, the group’s queen bee. But growing closer to Abigail (and her intriguing older brother) forces Dylan to choose: keep living a lie or come clean and face the consequences.

My Thoughts

Dylan proved to be a fairly typical self absorbed 17-year-old girl whose main concern in the beginning turned out to be finding a way to “shine” so when the somewhat nerdy junior was singled out by the hot senior boy she fell hook, line and sinker for his charming and practiced seduction.

Finding herself a few months later friendless, dumped and than humiliated Dylan basically becomes a recluse, she turns to the internet and finds herself becoming obsessed with reading the blogs of young women who are her polar opposites.

Dylan wants so badly to connect with these girls and so she creates Faith, the alter ego that allows her to create an entire life built on what she gleaned from reading and a life that is a total fabrication.

Soon “Faith” has online friends that boost her confidence, one in particular named Abigail Dean is actually the original inspiration that Dylan used as the basis for her alter ego and as they chat online over time they get closer and closer until finally the idea for a summer visit with the Dean family comes to fruition.

This is where the book became a little bit murky for me as in my mind the dishonesty that is perpetrated on the unsuspecting family is one that crosses way too many moral lines.

The good thing is that after all is said and done Dylan manages to learn valuable life lessons that also carry over when she returns home to her parents and younger brother, allowing her to express how much she appreciates them. As a result of her short absence she comes home to find her mother has made some changes in her professional life allowing her to spend more time pursuing hobbies as well as more time with Faith one on one.

Felt unfinished when ended though as several important points were left unresolved to my satisfaction.

[Kindle version borrowed from Public Library]