Miss Understanding

Fiction by Stephanie Lessing
Reviewed by Colleen Q.
Not in the NVHS collection as of this post


Zoe Rose never quite fit in. In kindergarten, Zoe, with her enormous red afro, was constantly being teased by the other children. At thirty, Zoe became deputy editor at a typical high class fashion magazine where she becomes fixated with understanding what makes girls be so cruel to the girls who just don’t seem to get it. Zoe, a radical feminist, is essentially working against the staff since nearly every member of the workforce hates her and does everything in their power to sabotage her. Her feminist ideas mixed with the original glossy magazine like oil and water. They were not exactly the best of matches.

Whatever Zoe did at the office, publisher Dan Princely’s mother, Anita and “her girls,” Sloane and Blaire, worked just as hard to transform her articles into ridiculously horribly pieces. Despite these efforts to ruin her and get her fired, Zoe perseveres and keeps trying to get her message to the nation’s women. To be successful, she must first get Sloane and Blaire out of the way. Will her sly scheme take care of them so that Zoe can get down to business of stopping girls from acting awful toward other girls? Or will her wacky personality, wretched sense of style, and hypochondria cause her instead to be eaten alive?

Miss Understanding, Stephanie Lessing’s second novel to She’s Got Issues, is in most senses odd, yet at the same time fun and silly. It is grabbing throughout, making it enjoyable to read. Lessing also easily brings humor to her stories, and this book is no exception. Miss Understanding is sensible for girls ages fourteen and older and will be enjoyed by all girls who have felt misunderstood.