In the Garage

Author:    Alma Fullerton

Publisher:  Red Deer Press

Edition:  Print

Where I got the book:  Strathcona High School Library

Publisher's summary: 


 I'm up here, in front of God, the priest, and the congregation listening to EVERY SINGLE AMPLIFIED BREATH, of every person in front of me, unable to say a God-damn word about the guy who was my best friend for eight years.  All I can do is stand silent, and think about how it all began.  Barbara Jean (BJ) Belanger has always suffered from low self-esteem: she has a portwine birthmark on her face, she feels overweight, and has repeatedly suffered the taunts of others her age for which she is a natural target, a victim.  One of the very few who have treated her with respect, understanding and affection is Alex, who becomes her best friend.


 And what's ripping her apart as the story opens is that she knows she has betrayed him in the worst possible way. 
 When Alex takes on a new member of his garage band, David, the balance of all their lives is upset, as Alex seems to display more affection for David than for her.  Disaster comes when BJ is persuaded that she should steal Alex's journal of poems, in which he reveals the dark secret of his real feelings for David. Very quickly, BJ's life is turned upside down in a terrible moment in which the meanness of the world proves too much to bear.