| Mona Lisa Figg Newton is an overweight, lonely, and cynical teenager. She hates her family, who, even though they have the best intentions, are just too 'weird' for her. Many years ago, before Mona was born, they were ex circus freaks, and they still act in the unusual ways, much to Mona's embarassment. There's Sissie, Mona's mother, who constantly tap dances, Newton, a used car dealer, "who always manages to lose money in every car deal he makes.", and then there's Truman, "a double jointed idiot", and Mona's cousin, Fido, who walked on all fours until he was six.
And then there's Uncle Florence, who according to Mona, "is the best of the lot by far." Uncle Florence is Mona's only friend and confidante. Florence is a well-known book dealer, and Mona admires him for that, even though he's hinting he might die soon. When Uncle Florence dies, Mona realizes she is truly alone. She alienates herself from her family, from her city, from her whole world. She soon develops a mental illness, and desperately tries to find Uncle Florence once again. | ||
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Plot & Themes Tone of book? - thoughtful Time/era of story - 1960's-1970's Family, loving relations Yes Special relationship with - uncle Internal struggle/realization? Yes Is this an adult or child's book? - Adult or Young Adult Book Coping with loss of loved one(s) Yes Loss of... Main Character Gender - Female Profession/status: Age: - a teen Ethnicity/Nationality Unusual characteristics: Main Adversary Identity: - Female Age: - a teen Profession/status: How sensitive is this character? Sense of humor - Cynical sense of humor Intelligence - Smarter than most other characters Setting How much descriptions of surroundings? - 9 () United States Yes Island? Yes Writing Style Lot of foul language? Yes Amount of dialog - roughly even amounts of descript and dialog |
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