Reader Alert…This novel contains sensitive subject matter...
The novel, “Because I am Furniture” by Thalia Chaltas is told in poetry form. The novel tells the story about a fifteen year old freshman girl named Anke who grows up feeling nothing more than like a piece of furniture. Anke lives in a home with her mother, father, sister and brother, but her life is far from normal. Anke’s family suffers abuse at the hands of her father. He is verbally, physically and sexually abusive. He beats her brother Darren, and forces her sister Yaicha to take birth control pills because he is sexually abusing her. The weird part of it all is that throughout the physical and sexual abuse, Anke goes unharmed. She doesn’t seem to understand why she is unharmed and ignored. Oddly, Anke partly feels anger and guilt because she’s not being abused which is why she describes herself as a piece of furniture. Anke says, "I am always there. But they don't care if I am because I am furniture. I don't get hit. I don't get fondled. I don't get love because I am furniture. Suits me just fine." She is furious and often wonders why her mom and siblings does or says nothing about the abuse.
Meanwhile Anke finds solace as she joins the volleyball team and meets Kyler who she begins dating. While on the team Anke finds the confidence and strength she never knew she had and begins to get the courage to stand up to her abusive dad. The plot unfolds and the story becomes more intense when Anke sees her father trying to rape her friend Angie.
Educators please be advised! Before assigning this novel; I would definitely take in consideration of the audience because of the graphic nature. Overall, I enjoyed reading “Because I am Furniture” regardless of the poetry format. Although this novel was fiction; it addressed real issues. You never know what people are going through in the comfort of their homes…
4 comments:
Also take in to consideration some students may have dealt with situations similar to this in their own homes.
This is well-done, Keshanna. I thought to myself--even though she is not being sexually abused, she too is being abused, psychologically, when living in this situation.
This is such a sad book, and whats even more sad is that many students can probably relate to this story of either being ignored or sexually abused. I am intrigued by your book summary, and look forward to reading this book in the future.
This book sounds very intense. It is extremely touchy subject matter and I agree with you that educators should take extreme caution when considering having their students read this book. You never know how stories like this can effect your students. It sounds like depending on the character development and the conclusion of the conflict it may really help teens who might be going through something like this. An educator must also consider how this reading could potentially negatively effect readers who are unfamiliar with this type of situation.
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