Are You in the House Alone?

Richard Peck's YA drama/thriller about the aftermath of rape is realistically portrayed. Peck does not show us any graphic details of the rape; instead, his focus is on high school student Gail's simple and endearing teen perspective about her life and relationships. Right away, we learn that there are class divides in their small community, and though this may seem typical and trivial, it is an important aspect of the story that later explains why her rapist is able to get away with his crime.

Gail is a normal teenager: she loves someone, she is enjoying figuring life out, she adores her best friend and has a decent bond with her parents. Gail is well-liked by everyone. So when she is raped and virtually no one either believes it happened or doubts Gail's testimony about who did it, and when some actually turn on her, the reader is devastated.

Before the rape, Gail suffers almost entirely in silence when she begins receiving threatening notes and phone calls, unsure how to tell anyone or what to do about them.

Peck invites you into the life of a girl who didn't deserve to be rejected by her peers and who deserves to be believed. This is a compelling narrative that reveals the faults of others, those who elevate her rapist's social status to justify his hideous act while Gail suffers the unnecessary emotional and mental agony from it.

Peck wants us to discuss things openly, to reach out to the victims and to believe them.

Themes: silence, isolation, betrayal, teen relationships, social class