Faking Faith by Josie Bloss

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Faking Faith by Josie Bloss

Flux, November 8, 2011

Summary from Goodreads:

After a humiliating "sexting" incident involving a hot and popular senior, seventeen-year-old Dylan has become a social outcast—harassed, ignored, and estranged from her two best friends.
When Dylan discovers the blogs of homeschooled fundamentalist Christian girls, she's fascinated by their old-fashioned conversation themes, like practicing submission to one's future husband. Blogging as Faith, her devout alter ego, Dylan befriends Abigail, the group's queen bee. But growing closer to Abigail (and her intriguing older brother) forces Dylan to choose: keep living a lie or come clean and face the consequences.

This was an enjoyable read. I'm finding that I enjoy reading realistic fiction about religions that are different from what I've experienced before. Dylan is your typical teen girl who makes one mistake and ends up a social pariah. I think this novel touches on the possible implications of sexting, but it doesn't push one agenda over the other, and I felt this was a nice touch. I don't think a girl who willingly sends pictures of herself should be prosecuted in the same way as a man who hunts and downloads illegal pictures of children, you know? But it really is a fine line, and thinking about the ethics of sexting really starts to make my brain hurt, so I'm glad this story didn't revolve around the sexting incident, but Dylan's life after the incident.

I felt that Dylan's trip into the world of Christian homeschooled girls was a natural one. I mean, there are plenty of other worlds she could have been exploring on the internet; this one was relatively tame. I think Josie Bloss did a great job of describing how a non-religious girl gets sucked into this vastly different online world. I was a little concerned at how quickly and seamlessly Abigail accepts "Faith" (Dylan) into her life...she's got parental guidance and all, but it still seemed like it would be really easy for someone who's not-so-nice to worm his way in.

Anyway, the story was quite enjoyable. Abigail's family is way-out-there...I'm all for different strokes for different folks, but I think some basic tenets should be observed--you know, like women are equal, children are children, not slaves--and should be properly educated and allowed to make their own decisions regarding their futures, etc., etc. But still, it's an interesting glimpse into this way different world, and it truly provides a learning experience for Dylan-as-Faith. Fans of contemporary fiction should enjoy this novel.

Borrowed book from the library.

Enjoy your reading!

Christi