Staring Down The Dragon
Dorothea N. Buckingham
(Associate Student Reviewer - Karrie G.)
2003 Sydney Press
ISBN: 0972457739
A story about a teenager who survives cancer.
Associate Student Reviewer Karrie G. writes:
Rell has spent the last year in a hospital in San Francisco, being treated for Hodgkin's disease, a form of cancer. When she has been successfully cured, she returns to her home in Hawaii. During the long hours in the hospital when she was depressed she would dream of the sandy beaches of home & all her friends. In those dreams, she could quietly slip into the classroom. No one would notice, & everyone, including herself, could pretend they'd never heard of cancer.
But reality steps in when Rell does return to her school. Watching her fellow students from the car, Rell can't work up the courage to enter wearing a wig & that scar running down her face. Putting on a happy face for her mother, she allows herself to be dropped off but spends the day in the nearby McDonalds.
The next day, Rell bites the bullet. Despite her dread she finds she rather likes the attention she receives from her class. They applaud, proud of her for defeating the dragon. She's given a lei, & everyone smiles at her. In the second class however, there is no applause or garlands. The teacher hardly takes notice of her, & no one says anything about her surviving the cancer. Just like she dreamed. But apparently, not quite what she wanted.
Soon Rell & her best friend & fighting. According to Emi, Rell only wants attention & should stop talking about cancer. At first Rell defends herself, but when Emi reminds her that she hadn't remembered her birthday during treatment, she feels terrible. Somehow Rell would like to make it up to Emi, but simultaneously she feels they can't go on this way much longer. Emi simply doesn't understand her anymore. & later, no matter how many times Rell calls, Emi is always out. Has cancer taken away her best friend too?
One person Rell feels she can talk to, or who can at least distract her a little, is her new boyfriend. Nate is a handsome older boy who also tutors her in math. But he always seems to be pushing her. Always wanting a little bit more, asking her to take her wig off. To stop being so afraid with him. But Rell is afraid with everyone.
Her mother watches Rell like a hawk, as if expecting her to pass out at any second. Every day she reminds Rell of cancer, by warning her not to exert herself, not to stay in the sun to long, & to eat right. It's beginning to feel like all she is to her parents is a cancer patient, ready to relapse at any moment. & while her parents think she's sleeping, she hears them fighting downstairs. Something they've been doing more & more since she came home.
In the midst of all of this, one of Rell's dearest friends from the hospital who hadn't been cured, was now probably dying. The idea of losing her is unbearable. Rell takes a plane to San Francisco to be with her. When she sees LB lying in the hospital bed, she knows it's only a matter of time. LB has lost a lot of weight, has many nosebleeds, & her breathing is shallow & irregular. It's horrible to see her friend dying. But secretly she's terrified the same end may be in store for her. In the shower, she finds a small hard bump in the back of her neck. But Rell is too scared to have it examined or to tell anyone. The dragon is leering at her, still not defeated completely.
I've read books about teenagers being diagnosed with cancer before, but I've never read a book concerning what it's like to go back to school after the cancer is in remission, & what challenges you have to face. Rell became real to me within the pages, & I soon felt as if I were reading a friend's diary. I have no idea what it would be like to have cancer, but the book really did feel like it was told by someone my age.
Karrie G.
A RebeccasReads.Com Associate Student Reviewer
Reviewer's Bio:
Karrie G. lives in The Netherlands. She is 15 years old, attends a Dutch Language School & is originally from Wisconsin, USA
Her favorite colors are: light blue, sea green, lavender & black!
Favorite sports are: swimming & soccer.
Favorite school subjects are: languages & creative writing class.
Favorite things to do are: playing the piano, reading, writing short stories & poetry, drawing & going to the movie theater.
The Netherlands is one of the smallest countries in Europe. Most people call the Netherlands Holland & it is about the size of Connecticut, but with a lot more people, sixteen million. You may think of tulips, chocolate, windmills & wooden shoes when you think of Holland. Although there are still lots of tulips & chocolate, & there are still some windmills, you wouldn't see many people wearing clogs today.
Books make great gifts: no calories, carbs or cholesterol!
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