RECKLESS, GLORIOUS, GIRL

Ellen Hagan narrates her novel in verse, which focuses on 12-year-old Beatrice the summer before she starts seventh grade. Hagan gives Beatrice a slight Southern accent to reflect the story's Kentucky setting. Despite the wealthy kids at her middle school calling her a hillbilly, Beatrice develops confidence from the support of her good friends and the strength of her loving family, especially her mother and her "mamaw." Hagan gives a flowing cadence to the verse, making the story's intergenerational wisdom sound poetic as Bea develops a strong sense of self. S.C. © AudioFile 2021, Portland, Maine [Published: JUNE 2021]