Teenreads.com - BOTH SIDES NOW by Ruth Pennebaker

Random House

BOTH SIDES NOW
by Ruth Pennebaker
List Price: $5.50
Pages: 208
Format: Paperback
ISBN: 0440229332
Publisher: Laurel Leaf

Liza thinks she and her mother, Rebecca, are as different as a mother and daughter can be. Liza, a successful high school junior, works hard at keeping her life under control while maintaining a positive outlook.

Rebecca, who gave up writing after her book was rejected, recently completed grueling treatment for breast cancer. When tests reveal that more painful treatments are needed, it seems to Liza that Rebecca has given up.

As the control of Liza's once predictable life unravels, she sees her mother's courage and strength in a whole new light. Perhaps they can share the pain of the unknown together.

1. Rebecca and Liza have different ideas and feelings about breast cancer. Rebecca wants her family to see the changes in her personality and the ways in which she is stronger now. Liza is afraid to talk about her mother's illness. Discuss the reasons for these different responses. How would you feel?

2. Liza feels anxious when her mother talks about cancer. Liza describes the "panic rising . . . like a siren that's going off" and the need to stop her mother from elaborating on her fear of dying. (p. 138) Why do you think Liza resists these discussions?

3. How would you describe Liza's reaction in the wig store? Why is she afraid to lose control of her emotions?

4. Rebecca describes Liza as "holding on too tight, trying to hold on to something that's not there any longer." (p. 132) How are Liza's actions affecting her emotionally?

5. What function do the characters of Richard, Mr. Sorenson, Rory, Emma, and Beverly serve in the story? How do they represent part of Liza's other world, outside her home life?

6. When Rebecca tells her family she does not want the stem-cell transplant, Liza realizes, "We thought we'd been protecting her for years. That's what Dad had told me, and that's what I'd thought. But maybe it wasn't nearly that simple. . . . I wonder how much Mom's protected me without my knowing it." (p. 199) What does Liza recognize now about her mother's strength of spirit?

7. "I feel as if I've been picked up and shaken and thrown back down to earth. And now I have to put things back together." (p. 202) What do you think of Rebecca's description of her experience as a breast cancer survivor? How does this relate to Liza's feelings?

8. How does the ending make you feel? Discuss the ways Liza and Rebecca are better equipped to talk with each other after honestly discussing breast cancer.

9. Do you know someone with breast cancer? Have you ever discussed your family history?

Courtesy of Laurel Leaf

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