Crosses

by Shelley Stoehr

Unhappy at home, Nancy and her friend Katie adopt punk lifestyles and find relief in cutting themselves, until Nancy is forced to confront her problems

Genres: Young Adult, Fiction, Mental Health, Mental Illness, Realistic Fiction, Psychology, Drugs

153 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1991

Reviews

[Nattie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I started cutting my arm during my freshman year of high school. Until I read Crosses, I did not know that other people were doing the same thing. In 1994 cutting seemed to be almost unheard of. Crosses became such a dear book to me that I practically idolized it.

At 38 I realize that Crosses probably did me more harm than good, but back then I was someone trying to ease the pain of being extremely confused about the why of who I was. I was a morbidly shy black teenager and all but obsessed with James Spader, James Dean, and Buddy Holly, along with Audrey Hepburn, Ted Bundy, and doo-wop music. Nobody my age and ethnicity seemed to understand me, and kids outside of my ethnicity weren't really chomping at the bit to be friends.

The confusion went on for many years, and Crosses and my shards of glass were there every time somebody would ask me what I was doing listening to Metallica or Celtic music, or why I was walking around in long black nightgowns and combat boots.

I don't think I would ever read the book again. I still read books from my youth on a regular basis, but I want to keep a fond memory of Crosses and reading it now would probably destroy it.

[ha · Rating 3 out of 5]

3-4/5
War eh Unterhaltsam aber kann nicht mit meinen anderen 4 Sterne Büchern mithalten. Ende war zu offen

[E · Rating 2 out of 5]

Damn. Had a whole review written then accidentally closed the tab. Le sigh.

OK, so, what did I write? This book made all things punk seem supremely unattractive to me. I'm not going to pretend that it was a torturous read or totally boring, as I definitely was drawn back in over and over, but it had enormous potential, and lived up to next to none of it.

'Crosses' read like this: "So here's this dumb thing I did. I got in trouble. Here's this other dumb thing I did. I got in trouble. Here are more mistakes I made. Here are more people I hurt. Here are more bad choices. The end." As others have noted, it all but ends mid-sentence, and there was almost no discernible story arc or character development that I could pick up on. I don't tend to be favorably disposed towards books where I can't stand the protagonist, and this was one of them. Hello? How many more times are you going to F up your life before you decide that maybe, just maybe, this whole substance abuse thing is a bad plan? Nancy came across as bratty, disrespectful, and annoying. And stupid, of course. I just couldn't bring myself to pull for her, and even my normal compassion towards those who are suffering barely registered. She was like the fiction equivalent of the sloppy drunk at the party who falls all over herself all night as she whores for attention. The "here's a dumb thing I did, here's another dumb thing I did" narrative format certainly didn't help. It was just one thing after another.

Another major gripe is that I don't feel the author takes substance abuse or self-injury seriously. Cutting is not a fad, nor some silly activity melodramatic teens who need to get a real problem engage in just to get attention, nor something people who are merely bored tend to engage in. The treatment of a very serious disorder came off as shallow and sensationalized. I feel 'Crosses' does a disservice to those who are actually suffering, and need help and understanding.

The Long Island setting was cool -- I've read so few books that are actually set here -- but yeah, overall this book is a pass. I wouldn't recommend it to anyone who is seeking solace in dark times, nor the loved ones of teens who cut or abuse drugs and alcohol. I don't know the author's background, but I wonder just how much she really knows about these subjects.

[Jennifer · Rating 3 out of 5]

One of the first books about cutting, and still relevant.

[Krysten · Rating 1 out of 5]

Honestly, It is usually interesting to read of the struggles that other young people suffer through, and at times it can even be uplifting to see them overcome the trials of drug abuse, eating disorders, and self mutilation. Yet, with Crosses, the problems that the main character went through seemed shallow and there was nothing to be learned. It was pretty much like watching a bad accident, accept its happening in slow motion. I couldn't help but hold the main characters with contempt, and there wasn't anything I could feel sympathetic towards. Perhaps, it was the perception of the story but it wasn't even in the least moving or touching. It simply had me frustrated with the society and social norms of today's youth.

[Robyn Stonechild · Rating 5 out of 5]

this book was really quite amazing; the way Shelley Stoehr has written this novel really has opened my eyes on how much teenagers go through in everyday life; I know I was one of those teenage girls that felt the pressure on looking good and not being noticed in everyday life like the way these two teenage girls were experiencing in their lives. It also brings a raw and open look at teen suicide and brings the light on how much teenagers go through everyday to not feel like the weight of the world is being put on their backs.

[Ever · Rating 4 out of 5]

I picked up an old copy of this and I didn't think it would be any good, but it hit a surprising amount of nerves with me. I never participated in cutting, but I had a friend that did when I was about the age of the characters in the book. A lot of the feelings, the reactions of others, the 'reasons' behind the cutting brought back a lot of my own memories. The author must have had some personal experience to write so truly and frankly (or a hell of an imagination).

[Ashley · Rating 5 out of 5]

crosses is about two young girls who go down the wrong path, and start cutting. i cant really tell about this book without giving everything away. If you like books that are based on real life experiences this is a really great book to read. it is honestly my all time favorite book, i will always love this book.

[Stephanie · Rating 2 out of 5]

I found an old photo of myself reading this in high school, when I was 14. Although this book deals with important issues, all I can think of is: WHO in their right mind would get BLACK OUT wasted, if they had the luxury of seeing DAVID-FREAKING-BOWIE LIVE IN CONCERT??!!! That's pretty much all I remembered.

[Tiara Anderson]

I think this book is really good. I related to it a lot. I did not like a certain part of it, it made me upset and I almost cried but then the very end was good. I'd like to read another book like this.

[Lisa Heinsohn · Rating 5 out of 5]

Belongs in the top five of the best and most impressive teen novels I've read.

[Rachel · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book made me so angry. I hate when I hear girls that cant get their stuff together, I understand that teenagers make bad decisions but as the reader I was hoping that Nancy would get her act together and for the majority of the time she didn't. In a way I did feel bad of Katie because her home life was not stable what so ever but I just don't get how Nancy got stuck in that situation she came from a more stable home. I guess I just had high hopes for Nancy but it didn't ever really happen.

[Samlikekaya · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a good book. I liked it more then I liked "Cut" it just felt a bit more, idk, real I guess? I like how human she is, and how many mistakes she makes. It funny, she never realizes certain things about herself before the end of the story and I personally really like that! It shows she has more things she needs to fix and although yes, she's a fictional character, I like to think about her finding herself more over time.

There where certain things I didn't understand, especially near the end of the book, but still, it's a good read! It only took me a day to finish, give it a try!

[Nebiki · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this book while in Highschool and I wish that they'ld make it mandatory for all 16yr olds. I gave it to my youngest sister to read and am now looking for another copy (mine got lost a few years ago) for my soon to be 16yr old niece and my boys for when they're 16. It is a beautiful book, in that it rips you raw and makes you realise that you are not alone. It's brutaly honest and that's what teens need. A must read. And worth a re-read every once in a while

[Rebekah · Rating 5 out of 5]

I would not have been allowed to read this book as a kid, except as a cautionary tale or example of "how bad some people have it." These were the kind of people my family feared and avoided. But the experience is real and visceral and the voice rings true, like the voices of my old high school students--so emphatic in the moment, but their whole world can shift in an instant. This novella held true to itself every second and I'm glad my adult self was able to read it.

[Ahmed El-Bahrawy · Rating 4 out of 5]

I don't usually like the young adult genre, but I knew I will, and I did, enjoy reading Crosses. I did not sympathize with Nancy that much, but I can say that I understood what she is going through, how purposeless she was and how she felt empty. The end was sad though.

[Kathy Stout · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a well written book. The main topic is pretty heavy for this to be in a middle school library. I would recommend it for eighth grade and high school. The storyline is about friends, love, and sex.

[Erin Labate · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is by far my favorite book ever. I read it as a kid a million times. It’s so real and so deep. It’s beautifully written. Highly recommend it still today. I have to get another copy. I’ve already had at least 3 but I keep wearing them out. If i could rate it over 5 stars I would

[Courtney Aslanidis · Rating 5 out of 5]

I found this book after reading 'Go Ask Alice'. Such a sad and powerful story. A great read, and one that you will want to visit again and again.

[Kendra KB.HG · Rating 3 out of 5]

I lovvved this book in high school. But reading it as an adults it definitely has its problems

[Sann · Rating 4 out of 5]

Important book to me in my teens.

[Jason Brown (Toastx2) · Rating 3 out of 5]

Crosses - A cut up book about a cut up girl
December 11, 2007

In a bookstore with Jenn, we had about an hour to kill waiting to see a movie together. What to do, what to do. Well, let's go over to the mall bookstore and browse the shelves. We are both avid readers so it is always nice to talk books with her. I described a book to her (I was at a loss for the name of the book or the author at the time, even though it was one that was in my collection). She stated that she had never read it the cover creeped her out as a kid. The next day she came forward with a full cover image of A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L’Engle, and I was surprised we were able to communicate images into books. Cover art is important people!

So we are in the bookstore, wandering about both together and on separate missions. It gets into my head that I have not read the books Go Ask Alice / Jay’s Journal since I was in jr high school. I mosey over to the computer to look up which section they would be located in. I find them under “Anonymous” in the young adult section of the store. Unexpectedly, Anonymous falls under a subsection of Miscellany, not 'A' as you would expect. Proud of my find, off I go stalking Jenn to show off my prize!

Jenn advised that she always felt that Shelly Stoehr's Crosses was a better, more graphic teen scare fiction. Not seeing a copy in the store, she tells me she can dig it out of her storage unit in order to allow me access to it, provided I don't mind reading an incredibly beat up copy that has been mangled by her teenage whims.
Here are my perceptions, along with images of the mangled book corpse:

Crosses is a very short read. Clocking in at under 200 pages, don't pick it up if you are looking for substance in a piece of work. It is a light and fluffy (read: overly dramatic / generally droll) approach to teenage cutting, drug use, and sex. The author, Shelley Stoehr, has written many similar books with titles such as 'Weird on the outside' and 'Wannabe'. It looks like she had some success with Crosses and decided to relive her youthful self-depreciating behavior through books and make a little nest egg of money.

I am not dissing on the book. It was enjoyable, in as much as you can expect being inside the head of a fifteen-year-old girl on the decline can be “fun”.

Nancy, the main character, pushes the storyline through its motions in a first-person semi-journal style. There are no dates on the chapters, nor cheesy “dear diary” lines tossed in, just narrative. She is your average stereotypical jr high school girl. She is whiney and pig-headed, self-serving and lacking wit.

Nancy does well in school but is tired of being the 'smart person' in her classes. She wants to stand out. Nancy begins to wear safety pins in her ears and decks herself out in punk rock “fashion” but has no known knowledge of the punk rock world. Nancy meets Katie in the bathroom, and over the course of days, they learn of a shared fascination with cutting themselves. The action focuses on them, associating with their assumed reality and pain. They become fast friends and begin to steal, consume drugs and raise hell. Mainly they just lay about sick from whatever drug or drink they imbibed too much of in the last chapter.

You can guess where the faux morality tale goes from there.

Putting myself back in the combat boots I wore in high school, I can see this being either a prized placement book on my bookshelf or just as easily, being set fire as a trash novel intending to use scare tactics to bring children away from drug use. I can't tell you which it would have been as I am far too different of a person now, but I did honestly enjoy the book. It was refreshing to read someone else's misery and cluelessness.

I can see where this book would backfire and could have been used as a misguided and utterly inaccurate handbook for kids.

Some lessons this book would teach:

* Don't drink so much that you pass out and nearly get raped
* 3 easy ways to shoplift
* Concert survival on hash brownies
* What not to do when shrooming

[Ivy · Rating 4 out of 5]

I had a difficult time with this book and now I am having a difficult time with this review. It is so very real, so reminiscent, so heartbreaking - it brought back many painful memories for me.
Crosses is a tragic, emotionally visceral story that rings with gut-wrenching truth. It centers on the main character, Nancy, and her relationships with her newly discovered best friend, her boyfriend, her parents and her cutting compulsion.
For the first half of the story I imagined I would give it a two star rating - I was just so depressed while reading it and I had mixed feelings about the messages it brings to the reader. However, I eventually realized that my envisioned low rating of the story was based on my own personal experiences and feelings, which of course were negative and from a part of my life that I try not to dwell on. As I read on and got closer to the end my opinion of the book improved.
The final chapters utterly broke my heart, and had me in tears. At the point of Nancy's breakdown and most especially Katie's death I was in the throes of ugly crying. After I finished the book, still in tears, I felt haunted and broken. It took me a bit to push it from the forefront of my mind and fall to sleep.

[Carol Boyer · Rating 5 out of 5]

Compelling, A Powerful Book!, October 30, 2016

Finding a new author is exciting for me and this book by Shelley Stoehr, did not disappoint. Crosses is written with striking reality, hard to read, it made me cry, it's poignant, yet it's hopeful as the author leaves you to your own thinking in the last chapter. Nancy is a lost teenager, dulling her emotional pain with cutting herself over and over again. Her parents are deep into their own addiction to alcoholism, detached and ineffectual with punishments or boundaries when Nancy continuously gets into trouble in school, and the community. Her best friend Katie is her cohort, and explains "We cut ourselves. It's what we are". Nancy has a straight boyfriend who loves her and rescues her each time and hopes it is the last. As Nancy spirals down deeply, she is caught in the same alcoholic dilemma as her parents adding to her destructive behaviors. The pace and characterization of this book is brilliantly written, I stayed up late just to finish it...then to ponder if there would be a sequel. I enjoyed this book, and will definitely read more of this author.

[Melissa Kidd · Rating 1 out of 5]

I didn't like this story. Plain and simple. Probably the only reason I finished this was because it was so short. And okay, I skimmed a few chapters. I didn't like the book because it was way too stereotypical and too focused on the SI - self-injury (particularly the drugs and sex) and not much on the recovery or character development. Any scenes of recovery are rushed and glossed over. I think there is one page where I saw a sincere attempt at recovery. Even the SI scenes came off as dull; There is SI in my history. I know the emotions behind it. What I saw here was not relatable or really that realistic. The book had potential I think but it came out all wrong for me. It needed to be fleshed out and written differently. The characters are flat and incredibly egotistical; they are almost offensive in their ignorant beliefs and whiny attitudes. Honestly I could hardly stand them. I didn't hate it, but I certainly didn't like it. Go ahead and find a better book. They're out there: Break or Speak are particularly good young adult books with this type of darker material present.

[Miss.Always.Reading.Books · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book was not what I expected. I was excited to read it but was let down. All it did was go in a circle. Katie and Nancy have one thing in common: they cut themselves. That makes them have a deeper understanding with each other. Through out the book this is all they do: go to school, cut, do drugs, get caught by the school teachers, get away with it because one of them have good grades and swear its their "first time doing drugs and they won't ever do it again" make out with their boyfriends, sneak out, go to parties, fight with their parents and cut themselves some more. Typical teenage behavior.
Page after page the books goes in a circle until the end when something bad happens.
I gave this book 2 stars because in my opinion it could have been better, it barely kept my attention.

[Victoria Vanamburg]

I finished this entire book within one day. It well described the hardships of teenage girls going through the rough times of adolescents with absent parents. I love that this is the first book written on self mutalation and people still read it, and my opinion its not even out of date. I think teens these days still go throught the same issues and struggles that Nancy and Katie did. Overall I enjoyed the book, but the ending greatly dissapointed me. I seriously thought there was a page missing. The ending was just a sentence to me it didn't end anything at all.

[Jaime Garcia · Rating 3 out of 5]

Crosses by Shelley Stoehr was an okay book. It wasn't what I expected. This book is about two high school girls in the 80's who go through a lot of problems, which they overcome eventually. Nancy is a troubled girl who meets Katie. Even though Nancy made a good friend it is still hard for her to face her problems. Nancy cuts herself and does drugs instead of facing the world.It is a descent book.

[Brittany · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nancy meets Katie and they become friends through the need for cutting. Nancy gets caught up in drugs and drinking with Katie while trying to keep other aspects of her life together, especially after tragedy befalls their friendship.

[Wildstar 🌈💜✨ · Rating 4 out of 5]

i pretty much lived this book. this was me in high school. only i was worse in some aspects, and better in others. its written simply, but is full of raw emotion, which is kind of more important, given the subject matter.