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The Tracey Fragments
Naked under a tattered shower curtain, 15-year-old Tracey Berkowitz has been sitting on a bus for two days, telling her story and looking for her brother, Sonny, who thinks he’s a dog. She confesses her hopes and fantasies, as well as the grief and horror of a hardscrabble life. As time passes, Tracey’s stories begin to twist the truth and entwine it with lies, at once captivating and unsettling the reader. As an unforgettable portrait of a teenager on the verge of imploding, The Tracey Fragments has been compared to The Catcher in the Rye with a style similar to that of Go Ask Alice. Maureen Medved's first novel is a raw, moving account full of twists and turns, fear and uncertainty, trust and betrayal.
149 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1998
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 44 reviews
February 16, 2017
This is the story of a young girl trapped in a storm. She is searching for her little brother during a blizzard, and her thoughts flurry in windswept directions. There is no protection for Tracey, yet she seeks solace as her journey takes her through the netherworld of the city to the isolation of the suburbs. Gradually, the pieces of Tracey's psyche form a coherent chain of events. This is an unflinching look of a girl on the edge, with nowhere to land.
Many thanks to my friend Thomas for reading this book with me.
Many thanks to my friend Thomas for reading this book with me.
November 10, 2022
2.5 stars
"The Tracey Fragments" is what happens when artists get too artsy and confuse style for storytelling.
The stark, in-your-face language paired with imaginative descriptions of ordinary things you'd find in a Canadian city in the winter are really the only things keeping this novella together, or readable. The characterisation is bare-bones, the people nothing more than shadow puppets thrown on the wall.
Even Tracey, our MC.
And that's where the style shoots itself in the foot.
The plot - or at least what's happened - can be deduced in the final ten pages. Here's what I deduced:
Nothing wrong with that as a backstory, but to convolute it to the point that most readers can't make heads or tails of what they're reading to make it more bold and daring - or perhaps more performable? These fragments have been done as performance art - is IMHO falling for the siren song of art over content.
An average 2.5 stars for the language alone.
"The Tracey Fragments" is what happens when artists get too artsy and confuse style for storytelling.
The stark, in-your-face language paired with imaginative descriptions of ordinary things you'd find in a Canadian city in the winter are really the only things keeping this novella together, or readable. The characterisation is bare-bones, the people nothing more than shadow puppets thrown on the wall.
Even Tracey, our MC.
And that's where the style shoots itself in the foot.
The plot - or at least what's happened - can be deduced in the final ten pages. Here's what I deduced:
Nothing wrong with that as a backstory, but to convolute it to the point that most readers can't make heads or tails of what they're reading to make it more bold and daring - or perhaps more performable? These fragments have been done as performance art - is IMHO falling for the siren song of art over content.
An average 2.5 stars for the language alone.
August 1, 2017
I believe that Medved wanted to place the reader directly inside of Tracey's mind, which is a crazy and confusing place. I watched the movie first and I believe that helped me to better understand what was going on.
Tracey is a lonely girl who manipulates the truth. She's riding on a bus and telling her story through flashbacks, but these flashbacks are like a puzzle. You never really know which pieces are true and which ones are only imagined.
There were a few passages scattered throughout the book that I found to be quite beautiful.
"One day you fall for this boy. And he touches you with his fingers. And he burns holes in your skin with his mouth. And it hurts when you look at him. And it hurts when you don’t. And it feels like someone’s cut you open with a jagged piece of glass.”
Tracey is a lonely girl who manipulates the truth. She's riding on a bus and telling her story through flashbacks, but these flashbacks are like a puzzle. You never really know which pieces are true and which ones are only imagined.
There were a few passages scattered throughout the book that I found to be quite beautiful.
"One day you fall for this boy. And he touches you with his fingers. And he burns holes in your skin with his mouth. And it hurts when you look at him. And it hurts when you don’t. And it feels like someone’s cut you open with a jagged piece of glass.”
February 16, 2017
A nightmarish and very effective roller coaster trip that is a young girls tragic story. Relentless and at the same time strangely hypnotic. Gives equal feelings of dread and helplessness. Appropriatley named, because the story is really fragmented, as is Tracey's psyche and her perception of the world and people around her. This is the kind of story that I often appreciate, but lose patience with before its over. Medved, however, does everything right. The writing is superb and the use of long poetic sentences mixed with short expletives as well as long and very short chapters works extremely well. The story is also just the right length I thought.
Huge thanks to Rebecca for making me aware and of course to Janie for reading it with me.
Huge thanks to Rebecca for making me aware and of course to Janie for reading it with me.
December 30, 2008
I borrowed this for an hour from a student; it's going to be a good one. She says it's the most important book she's read.
This is the most original voice I've read in a long time. The actual plot involves Tracey searching for her brother who's lost; but the narrative is much more than this...the ravings of a youngster who may be mentally ill, old family stories, the incredible angst of a teenager forced to live with parents she doesn't get -- who don't get her...and a third-person narrative of a sad, outcast girl who is the butt of everyone's jokes. Through all this, Medved NEVER loses Tracey's voice...
The author's notes said she has 'performed' pieces from this as monologues. All the time I was reading, I could see and hear this girl, wrapped up in her flowered shower curtain, just trying desperately to make sense of the world she's found herself in. AMAZING stuff! Lauren, you were right!!
This is the most original voice I've read in a long time. The actual plot involves Tracey searching for her brother who's lost; but the narrative is much more than this...the ravings of a youngster who may be mentally ill, old family stories, the incredible angst of a teenager forced to live with parents she doesn't get -- who don't get her...and a third-person narrative of a sad, outcast girl who is the butt of everyone's jokes. Through all this, Medved NEVER loses Tracey's voice...
The author's notes said she has 'performed' pieces from this as monologues. All the time I was reading, I could see and hear this girl, wrapped up in her flowered shower curtain, just trying desperately to make sense of the world she's found herself in. AMAZING stuff! Lauren, you were right!!
May 18, 2009
The book is great. Although, yes it may be a little confusing because it is told in fragments... but it does have a story. The story of Tracey Berkowitz, a fifteen year old girl, who doesn't even understand herself. It starts with her looking for her lost brother, and the end... it tells HOW and WHY she lost her brother that one fateful winter day.
The book is fantastic, I recommend it highly.
The book is fantastic, I recommend it highly.
January 7, 2009
Tracey can be really confusing at times. I think she is in desperate need of help. Her third person point of view is more honest than her tracey point of view. She is seriously in mental pain. she makes you want to help her, I cried when she explained certain thing.
This is a very powerful book. I recomend to all!
This is a very powerful book. I recomend to all!
December 22, 2011
"One day you fall for this boy. And he touches you with his fingers. And he burns holes in your skin with his mouth. And it hurts when you look at him. And it hurts when you don’t. And it feels like someone’s cut you open with a jagged piece of glass." How perfect.
March 19, 2019
I really don't know what to say about this book. Yes, it is extremely odd and unique but that kind of makes it good?
I have to admit that I got lost in the fragments of Traceys minds a lot and I can't say which parts of her story were real and which ones were just in her imagination - or just metaphor for the f*cked up life she had.
But exactly this makes this story so intriguing.
I have to admit that I got lost in the fragments of Traceys minds a lot and I can't say which parts of her story were real and which ones were just in her imagination - or just metaphor for the f*cked up life she had.
But exactly this makes this story so intriguing.
August 21, 2009
This is a wonderful book. It's very dark, but very realistic all the same. You may expect a happy ending, but get ready for a big surprise. If you feed on dancing and nostalgia and lovely memories, take note that this ISN'T the book for you. Mauereen Medved tells the most haunting tale of a fifteen year old girl, and if you don't change a bit once you finish reading this novel, then you haven't fully understood it.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
January 5, 2016
Confusing and fragmented; Real or not real. Even though this book made me feel like I might just be going crazy along with Tracey, there was just something about it. At times, I had no idea what was going on and I was horribly confused, but I just couldn't put it down.
February 28, 2008
The fact that I spent more than the cost of five novels to get a first-run copy of this book says something. The fact that I don't regret it says something else entirely.
May 24, 2012
I love Maureen's writing style and the clear, authentic voice of Tracey. You will devour this book. I read it in one sitting.
January 26, 2025
“I don’t like the country. Creeps me out. In the country, dead bodies live in swamps, and ditches, and shallow graves.”
4.00 / 5.00 stars
A traumatized girl clothed only in a shower curtain sits alone on a bus, desperately searching for her missing brother. Told in a series of flashbacks and reflections, “The Tracy Fragments” follows fifteen-year-old Tracey Berkowitz down the rabbit hole of her life into a truly terrifying view of a girl suffering from mental illness and the consequences of her actions.
Wow! I’m not sure I have fully processed this book or that I ever will. On the surface, it’s about a teen girl with mental health issues looking for her missing brother. Once you dig deeper, Tracey becomes so much more complex – she’s a sad, lonely, possibly depressed teen who is basically terrorized at school for being different, and is ultimately responsible for losing the one person she’s ever truly cared about that also loves her fiercely – her younger brother. Mix all her teenage feelings about life and herself, sit in the self-blame and guilt of her brother’s disappearance and, likely, death, and you end up with a young girl who literally snaps and becomes a fragmented version of herself. If she was just depressed before, imagine what this experience did to her psyche, and that’s where you find this story.
Tracey is more than just an unreliable narrator. She’s building and creating a narrative she can live with. One where she’s not the “It” girl being whispered about in the halls at school. One where she’s cool and interesting and has an amazing boyfriend. One where all the shattered fragments of her self both exist and don’t exist, but always show her in the best of light.
This was a very challenging read for so many reasons, but I’m glad I finally read it. I’m not sure if I’d read it again, but I’d like to know more of what happens to her in the future. What happens when someone finds her or turns her in? Can she recover from all the traumatic experiences she’s had throughout this story?
This book is best read by anyone who doesn’t mind jumping head-first into the chaotic and unstable world of a teen beyond their breaking point.
Connect with me on Instagram (@bookmarks_and_backbeats) for more reviews, musical pairings, and all around good times!
4.00 / 5.00 stars
A traumatized girl clothed only in a shower curtain sits alone on a bus, desperately searching for her missing brother. Told in a series of flashbacks and reflections, “The Tracy Fragments” follows fifteen-year-old Tracey Berkowitz down the rabbit hole of her life into a truly terrifying view of a girl suffering from mental illness and the consequences of her actions.
Wow! I’m not sure I have fully processed this book or that I ever will. On the surface, it’s about a teen girl with mental health issues looking for her missing brother. Once you dig deeper, Tracey becomes so much more complex – she’s a sad, lonely, possibly depressed teen who is basically terrorized at school for being different, and is ultimately responsible for losing the one person she’s ever truly cared about that also loves her fiercely – her younger brother. Mix all her teenage feelings about life and herself, sit in the self-blame and guilt of her brother’s disappearance and, likely, death, and you end up with a young girl who literally snaps and becomes a fragmented version of herself. If she was just depressed before, imagine what this experience did to her psyche, and that’s where you find this story.
Tracey is more than just an unreliable narrator. She’s building and creating a narrative she can live with. One where she’s not the “It” girl being whispered about in the halls at school. One where she’s cool and interesting and has an amazing boyfriend. One where all the shattered fragments of her self both exist and don’t exist, but always show her in the best of light.
This was a very challenging read for so many reasons, but I’m glad I finally read it. I’m not sure if I’d read it again, but I’d like to know more of what happens to her in the future. What happens when someone finds her or turns her in? Can she recover from all the traumatic experiences she’s had throughout this story?
This book is best read by anyone who doesn’t mind jumping head-first into the chaotic and unstable world of a teen beyond their breaking point.
Connect with me on Instagram (@bookmarks_and_backbeats) for more reviews, musical pairings, and all around good times!
March 18, 2025
I haven’t felt like this since I read the stranger in 2023. The Stranger and Bones & All had a baby and it was The Tracey Fragments. The way the book is written from the first page to the last felt like a shot ecstasy. I was hypnotized by the words and phrasing the author used. The way Tracey is described as the girl with no tits and associating herself as “it” really touched me. Brought me back to my last year of high school where I felt like Tracey. Questioning me a lot about my identity, self-perception, sexuality and especially dealing with trauma. Her big dumb moon face, not fitting in with other people and being laughed at by boys. The exasperation of feeling lost with itself because of their mental health after not knowing how to deal with trauma suddenly taking over you. Trying to protect yourself from falling apart from protecting your innocence of youth while losing your own innocence. The need to feel wanted while not wanting to even be with yourself. I don’t know if it’s because my mind works like Tracey’s but reading this book was easy for me as abc. When I write a book, it will definitely be written the same way the author did. S/O CP making me discover my now all time absolute second favourite book. Xxx
April 5, 2022
I started this book before I got eye surgery and finished it after recovery. It wasn't hard to pick back up and experience the frantic anxiety of Tracey's troubled thoughts and narration. I didn't always know what was real, but Tracey's voice rings loud and clear throughout the book. I wondered if my teenage thoughts were ever even close to being as fragmented and raw as this character's.
Good book, but probably not everyone's cup of tea based on the fragmented writing style and dark subject matter. I'm glad I read it though.
Good book, but probably not everyone's cup of tea based on the fragmented writing style and dark subject matter. I'm glad I read it though.
April 17, 2023
I stumbled across this book sometime in highschool and it completely rocked my world. I absolutely adore this and the movie is surprisingly good too (although there are VERY mixed reviews). It's a short, easy read and well worth it in my opinion.
March 15, 2025
I first read this book almost a decade ago for school and thoroughly enjoyed it. Lately, I've been itching for a re-read and I still enjoy this dark and tragic YA story as much now as I did back when I first read it. The writing style and story structure are poetic, steeped in imagery and metaphor. It can make for a more challenging reading experience but that challenge is part of the appeal. Trying to figure out what's really going on in the fragmented mind of Tracey is an adventure in and of itself.
January 23, 2019
This was one of those super odd books where the point is to be odd. My issue was that I just wanted to know what happened and the chaos made that impossible which was generally the point.
December 21, 2024
My favourite book as a teenager
August 9, 2025
Hell is a teenage girl.
July 18, 2011
They don't know how the knives in my skull carve tunnels to other places
I'm a pretty enthusiastic person and that means I catch myself saying THIS IS THE BEST BOOK I'VE EVER READ too often. However now, it's serious. Not only is it the best book I've read, it's the most important and most inspiring. I feel like the only way to show you is to type out every single page into this box but it's probably easier if you just go and read it yourself.
Around me people always breathe through their mouths
The title says it all: this special little book contains fragments of Tracey's mind structured in a way that only makes sense to her. Her mind is razor sharp, she'll hack you to death with stark imagery and often devastatingly bleak view. Medved's Tracey affected me like Buchner's Woyzeck: a character that is so sharp you can cut yourself on him and despite Tracey's obvious fragility she has wrapped herself in an armor of daggers ready to lash out if you get too close.
The fragmented structure is also partially because Medved originally performed passages as monologues so each fragment reads like a monologue. As a theatre student this appealed to me and I was blown away by her unique approach.
Tracey wrestles with her self-image and suffers from having the worst parents I've ever encountered in fiction so far. The mental abuse she endures leaves her no choice but to escape into her own world. She has a brother, Sonny but he's missing and so she ends up on a bus, naked, wrapped in nothing but a shower curtain and her flecks of her own blood.
Don't be fooled by Tracey's tender age, this is not teenage angst, it's more, it's depressing, it's beautiful, it grabs you and hurls you into another place. Read this. Please.
I'm a pretty enthusiastic person and that means I catch myself saying THIS IS THE BEST BOOK I'VE EVER READ too often. However now, it's serious. Not only is it the best book I've read, it's the most important and most inspiring. I feel like the only way to show you is to type out every single page into this box but it's probably easier if you just go and read it yourself.
Around me people always breathe through their mouths
The title says it all: this special little book contains fragments of Tracey's mind structured in a way that only makes sense to her. Her mind is razor sharp, she'll hack you to death with stark imagery and often devastatingly bleak view. Medved's Tracey affected me like Buchner's Woyzeck: a character that is so sharp you can cut yourself on him and despite Tracey's obvious fragility she has wrapped herself in an armor of daggers ready to lash out if you get too close.
The fragmented structure is also partially because Medved originally performed passages as monologues so each fragment reads like a monologue. As a theatre student this appealed to me and I was blown away by her unique approach.
Tracey wrestles with her self-image and suffers from having the worst parents I've ever encountered in fiction so far. The mental abuse she endures leaves her no choice but to escape into her own world. She has a brother, Sonny but he's missing and so she ends up on a bus, naked, wrapped in nothing but a shower curtain and her flecks of her own blood.
Don't be fooled by Tracey's tender age, this is not teenage angst, it's more, it's depressing, it's beautiful, it grabs you and hurls you into another place. Read this. Please.
January 14, 2015
This is the review of the book Tracy Fragments written by Maureen Medved, copyright date of 2007.
In the psychotic mind of 15 year old girl, Tracy Berkowitz. You follow her journey of trying to fight through a blizzard that has swept her town while trying to look for her little brother who she fears may have hypnotized as a dog.
The book was quite confusing to start with but if you thought about it as it was all in her imagination it seemed to make sense. The book is read through her point of view which makes more sense of what I mentioned earlier. I believe this book is more for the older group of people and not younger kids because it can be very graphic in certain spots but that kinda relies on your imagination. The style and flow of the book was something I have never witnessed in any other book. It has very small sentences that could totally be made longer but I think it was because of the way Tracy speaks. Short simple sentences that anyone could understand. Kinda why it kept me interested because you couldn't just stop in the middle of a page while those short sentences happened or you would get some what lost in the scene.
I would rate this book a 4/5 stars just because it would get confusing in the story for some parts but other that it was a fantastic book that would keep you attached to it and never want to stop reading.
In the psychotic mind of 15 year old girl, Tracy Berkowitz. You follow her journey of trying to fight through a blizzard that has swept her town while trying to look for her little brother who she fears may have hypnotized as a dog.
The book was quite confusing to start with but if you thought about it as it was all in her imagination it seemed to make sense. The book is read through her point of view which makes more sense of what I mentioned earlier. I believe this book is more for the older group of people and not younger kids because it can be very graphic in certain spots but that kinda relies on your imagination. The style and flow of the book was something I have never witnessed in any other book. It has very small sentences that could totally be made longer but I think it was because of the way Tracy speaks. Short simple sentences that anyone could understand. Kinda why it kept me interested because you couldn't just stop in the middle of a page while those short sentences happened or you would get some what lost in the scene.
I would rate this book a 4/5 stars just because it would get confusing in the story for some parts but other that it was a fantastic book that would keep you attached to it and never want to stop reading.
April 16, 2010
Dsyfunctional.... is what best describes "The Tracey Fragments"!
Tracey Berkowitz's life is confusing, yet very interesting!
The book is Tracey's mind racing from story to story, situation to situation, all the fragments of her so called life!
The book is full crazy rants and unforgettable prose, these two were my favorites-
"When a horse falls, foam comes out of its mouth. When it falls, the legs of the horse thrash and the horse is no good, so somebody shoots the horse. The horse turns into glue. A machine puts the glue into bottles. Some of the bottles have nipples and children squeeze the nipples to get the glue out and stick bits of paper onto cards. Glue gets on the children's hands and the children eat the glue. The children become the horse"
"I don't like the country. Creeps me out. In the country, dead bodies lie in swamps, ditches, shallow graves. A man dumps the body of a girl in a ditch. The body rots and melts into slime. Flowers pop up where the body lies. Seeds fly out of the flowers. A bee sucks the flowers and makes honey. The family of the girl buys the honey from the store. The family eats the girl."
Quick and short book, very easy to read, the dvd is out now, the movie should explain things a little better then the book!
Tracey Berkowitz's life is confusing, yet very interesting!
The book is Tracey's mind racing from story to story, situation to situation, all the fragments of her so called life!
The book is full crazy rants and unforgettable prose, these two were my favorites-
"When a horse falls, foam comes out of its mouth. When it falls, the legs of the horse thrash and the horse is no good, so somebody shoots the horse. The horse turns into glue. A machine puts the glue into bottles. Some of the bottles have nipples and children squeeze the nipples to get the glue out and stick bits of paper onto cards. Glue gets on the children's hands and the children eat the glue. The children become the horse"
"I don't like the country. Creeps me out. In the country, dead bodies lie in swamps, ditches, shallow graves. A man dumps the body of a girl in a ditch. The body rots and melts into slime. Flowers pop up where the body lies. Seeds fly out of the flowers. A bee sucks the flowers and makes honey. The family of the girl buys the honey from the store. The family eats the girl."
Quick and short book, very easy to read, the dvd is out now, the movie should explain things a little better then the book!
February 16, 2011
The language in this book was amazing! Like a poet thought out every word in prose. As if every single sentence was carefully matched with the exactly right words (that would make you understand absolutely nothing)
Probably the weirdest book I've ever read. I saw the movie before I read the book and I decided I should read the book to try and figure out what on earth the movie is all about.. Well... At least having seen the movie meant I wasn't clueless on the book.. (look at me rambling on - THIS IS WHAT THIS BOOK WILL DO TO YOU!)
I would definitely recommend for other people to read it. It was a weird, weird surreal journey as a mix between a movie, a play and a book...
The title "The Tracey Fragments" is spot on.. The little fragments in this book is everything from 3 lines to 7 pages all equally confusing!
Probably the weirdest book I've ever read. I saw the movie before I read the book and I decided I should read the book to try and figure out what on earth the movie is all about.. Well... At least having seen the movie meant I wasn't clueless on the book.. (look at me rambling on - THIS IS WHAT THIS BOOK WILL DO TO YOU!)
I would definitely recommend for other people to read it. It was a weird, weird surreal journey as a mix between a movie, a play and a book...
The title "The Tracey Fragments" is spot on.. The little fragments in this book is everything from 3 lines to 7 pages all equally confusing!
April 17, 2008
This is really called Tracey Fragments for a reason: it's really fragmented! Its nice because it's a short read and fairly quick to get through (some pages only have 2 or 3 sentences on them) but it's annoying because it's hard to understand what's really going on in the book. I also didn't like how you don't really know what she is imagining and what is really happening in the novel like the whole thing with her "boyfriend" Billy Speed, was he or wasn't he attached to her? Since the fragments begun as short stories I think that reading them individually would have made much more sense than reading it just as 1 book. I'd be really interested now in seeing the film and seeing how it was adapted because it might make more sense as a film. Alright novel, but really hard to understand.
October 30, 2008
I absolutely love this book, it moves me in ways I can't describe. I find myself laughing and crying every time I read it. I can relate my own life to the story in many ways, so it's very touching for me. Its hard to grasp at times, but I think in the end it's well worth it. I love reading different peoples interpretations of the story, even those who say they hate it. It's such a rare story in the way it gives merciless and raw descriptions of bullies and mental illness. Topics that most authors are out of touch in, and in the end fail to get their message across. Maureen Medved uses words that I use at school, and language that I get. I highly recommend this quick but heart wrenching read.
January 24, 2013
Probably the most disturbing book I’ve ever read.
The best part of this book was its language, which was sometimes breathtaking and unforgettable, and I loved the way it was written, but for some reason this book disappointed me. It was short, and nothing really happened the whole way through. It had no climax. No real plot line. Just fragments of Tracey’s broken mind which puts together a story we already know.
So the three stars mostly comes from the language Medved uses, which was pretty amazing, and the reason many people love this book.
The best part of this book was its language, which was sometimes breathtaking and unforgettable, and I loved the way it was written, but for some reason this book disappointed me. It was short, and nothing really happened the whole way through. It had no climax. No real plot line. Just fragments of Tracey’s broken mind which puts together a story we already know.
So the three stars mostly comes from the language Medved uses, which was pretty amazing, and the reason many people love this book.
July 14, 2011
It's hard to say that I "liked" this book, as I found it difficult to read on account of the subject matter. That being said, I really appreciated the fragmented writing style, and the character's voice, as well as narrative about her grandmother woven within the stories. Maureen Medved will be teaching the fiction class I'm enrolled in this fall, and I'm really looking forward to working with her after reading this novel.
May 20, 2012
This is an amazing book! Medved writes of a girl's experience as a teenager in a real and resonating voice. It gives important insight into the problems that girls have to deal with, and the expectations put upon them.
Tracey herself is a really interesting character, and I love the diasporic connection that she forms in her mind with her grandma Baba.
Overall, it is one of the best books I've ever read, and very unique.
Tracey herself is a really interesting character, and I love the diasporic connection that she forms in her mind with her grandma Baba.
Overall, it is one of the best books I've ever read, and very unique.
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