Mazie by Melanie Crowder is young adult historical fiction set in the 1950’s. The protagonist, Mazie, is spunky and likeable, and the reader is treated to a front-row seat as Mazie struggles with the transition from her childhood to adulthood while pursuing her dreams.
Thematically, this novel is rich. It touches on love of family, dreams and aspirations, accepting others, accepting self, drawing boundaries, persevering, over-coming self-doubt, having a positive body image, resisting peer/professional pressures, and the list could go on. The themes are not forced, but rise organically out of Mazie’s narrative.
In the acknowledgements the author says this book is a love letter to Nebraska, but it seemed to be more of a love letter to the culture and world of performance and musicals. With an older protagonist, but a gentle story, this book is a great selection for a wide young adult audience from the age of 12 to 18. Mazie is an enjoyable and engaging read for historical fiction lovers and theater lovers.
Review of a Digital Advance Reading Copy
This book was sent to Compass Book Ratings for review by Philomel
Content Analysis:
Profanity/Language: 10 religious exclamations; 30 mild obscenities; 2 religious profanities; 1 derogatory name; 3 scatological words; 6 anatomical terms.
Violence/Gore: None
Sex/Nudity: Male looks a female waitress up and down; reference to men ogling a character’s body; characters kiss; characters embrace; character puts arm around another’s waist; character kisses another character’s neck; character’s hold hands; character runs hands through another character’s hair; reference to customers’ roaming hands; character runs hand along another’s thigh; recollection of a romantic kiss; recollection of skinny dipping, no description; recollection of a memory with innuendo that could be interpreted that two teenagers had sex; conversation where a character says it is better to be in a room of gay men who aren’t ogling you than a room of straight ones; characters have a thoughtful, brief conversation about a gay couple they are going to help; boss touches back/arms/chin/neck/hip of actress in unwanted manner; character tells another he is not interested romantically in women but in men; woman has arm around another woman (romantic).
Mature Subject Matter:
Death of a loved one, sexual harassment, homosexuality, discrimination, gender roles.
Alcohol / Drug Use:
Under-age character reports she sometimes drank with her father after a hard day’s work; on a character’s 18th birthday a group goes to a bar and she gets drunk; adults drink cocktails at a gathering.
