Stereotype

Stereotype charts the progress of its narrator, Abigail Evans, as she negotiates the difficulties of being 17 at a middle-class, all-girls Dublin school. The various teenage cliques with their different hairstyles and music tastes are sharply observed, and many teenagers will recognise the narrator’s anxiety as she moves between these groups and tries to avoid stereotype. The serious subjects of underage drinking, self-harm and confused sexualities are all dealt with here. Some readers may find the treatment of these themes to be superficial, as the narrator is faced only with a hangover and some embarrassment after her drunken escapades. The novel does leave plenty of room for discussion, though, particularly concerning self-harm, which is perhaps of more use to its readership than a moral or didactic tone could be. Hennessy’s style is very readable. There is plenty of dialogue, and most of the writing is in the present tense, giving the novel a familiar, chatty tone. The story is divided into lots of very short chapters, similar to diary entries. A problem with the first-person narrative is that Abigail’s personality dominates entirely. The other teenagers, especially the boys, are twodimensional figures, and Abigail’s family are drawn to stereotype to the extent that they seem to have no physical presence at all. Despite this flaw, the novel would be enjoyable for girls aged 14–16, and for reluctant readers at the higher end of secondary school.