Sara Zarr

Sara Zarr was born in Cleveland, Ohio on October 3, 1970 but she was raised in San Francisco. She had an Evangelical Christian upbringing which inspired one of her books. She attended San Francisco State University and obtained a degree in communications. Story of a Girl is her first novel and it was published in 2007. She has also published four other books for young adults called Sweethearts, Once was Lost, The Lucy Variation, and What we Lost. She and her husband now live in Salt Lake City, Utah.

How to save a life by Sara Zarr

It's been 10 months since Jill's dad died. Jill was overwhelmed with grief when her father died since he was the parent that she was closest. She has her own routine; go to school, go to work and then come home and do the same things the next day. After her dad died she pushed away all of her friends and was also able to drive her boyfriend away.
Until now Mandy has only known her mother's lifestyle. Her mother has always had dreams of settling down with a man that will make her rich. Mandy never really had stability in her life. Her mother was always present but taught her to do vain things. Suddenly, Mandy gets pregnant and decides to leave home and find someone to adopt her baby.

What will happen when Jill's Mom decides to adopt Mandy's baby and let Mandy stay with them until her delivery? Jill thinks that her mom is making a rash decision. But, will Mandy's carefree personality be able to get along with Jill's routinely attitude?

This book had many cliff-hangers right from the beginning and is able to portray the lives of two very different girls. Jill who has always gotten everything she wanted and was very loved especially by her father until her father passes away. On the other hand Mandy has always felt neglected since her mother makes it very clear that she never intended to have a child. I think that it was very creative how the author was able to intertwine their stories together and to create a unique novel.