Growing up in cowboy country, the plains of Montana, Cameron Post finds herself, just like I did, transforming into a young adult during the 1990s. Unlike my journey though, Cameron's is far more tumultuous. She loses her parents at the age of 12, the day after she kisses her best girl friend and realizes she likes it. As a result of her parents deaths, Cameron's highly religious and conservative Aunt as well as her Grandmother move to Montana to take over her care. This turn of events sets the story on a fairly predictable but still enjoyable trajectory.
As teenage Cameron's identity begins to coalesce, she is forced to hide her budding lesbianism. Like any teenager though, her attempts to at once explore and bury her feelings leads to a series of very different relationships and eventually, to an unceremonious outing. And just as expected, Cameron's sexuality does not sit well with either her Aunt or the community leading to the final ripple in the tale as Cameron's Aunt Ruth decides to send her off to a religious boarding school that promises to cure Cameron of her sinful ways.
Altogether, despite the fact that "The Miseducation of Cameron Post" won't necessarily surprise you with its plot twists, Danforth's patience and just-right prose manages to create out of all of her characters full yet faulted individuals that will capture teens and adults alike. It is this skill that both keeps this tale from feeling either too preachy or predictable while forcing us to understand if not always relate with all of the different characters and their actions. In the end "The Miseducation of Cameron Post's" greatest strength is its reminder that it is what we share, love and loss, rather than where we differ that makes us human.
No comments:
Post a Comment