Jumping the Scratch by Sarah Weeks (award-winning author of So B. It) is beautifully written and easy to read with short chapters and explanations of advanced vocabulary, but its subject matter is not suited for its ten-year-old target audience. Better suited for readers over the age of twelve, this young adult book looks at sexual abuse through the eyes of the victim.
Eleven-year-old Jamie Reardon wants nothing more than for his life to be as “normal as cornflakes” – the way it was before his cat died, his father left, and he and his mother moved from their house to his aunt’s trailer to help her recover from an accident that claimed her short term memory. But achieving normalcy is difficult – especially when Jamie can’t forget about the night he was abused by the trailer park manager.
Helping Jamie deal with this traumatic experience is a cast of secondary characters that are both quirky and endearing. Audrey, a classmate otherwise known as Madame Yerdua (Audrey spelled backwards) the hypnotist, befriends Jamie and “sees” him. Arthur, as Jamie nicknamed him, helps Jamie feel safe again. And Aunt Sapphy, short for Sapphire, helps Jamie by being someone he can finally tell his secret to – someone who won’t remember it in the morning. With their support, Jamie learns to face his fears and jump the scratch – like on a broken record – in his life.
Like an after school special, this book mixes poignant moments with a serious topic but only scratches the surface of this delicate issue.
