Janet Fitch's White Oleander is a novel that depicts the struggles of a teenage girl who is forced to face real life on her own, it's a tale about coming of age despite the hardships she faces. The book portrays rare power and beauty. It tells a narrative of Ingrid Magnussen, an imposing beautiful woman who is also a great poet, and her daughter - Astrid Magnussen, who idolizes her mother with devotion. The main protagonist is Astrid, and the story is about how her life completely changes when her mother murders an ex-boyfriend, which sentences Astrid to an odyssey through different foster homes.
Astrid Magnussen starts out as an innocent loving daughter who doesn’t really know much of life, except for what she learns from her mother. She believes she’s a burden to Ingrid and for some reason, she longs for her love and affection. Ingrid refuses to look at the world from Astrid's perspective or hear out her desires. She has the notion that her daughter is stupid.
A major conflict that exists in the novel is the conflict between a daughter and a mother. Ingrid disregards her daughter’s safety and welfare and commits murder. As a result, Astrid is taken to the foster care system and is left alone to fend for herself since her mother gets imprisoned. Each home Astrid is sent to marks a different life lesson, adversities, laws, and dangers. Surprisingly, the hard-learned experiences lead her to a redeeming quest of self-discovery.
The author, Janet Fitch skillfully crafts the novel. Depicting remarkable psychological and artistic maturity, and exquisitely utilizes metaphors. An example is "beautifully poisonous oleander" which is a signature flower to Ingrid. She uses these skills to illustrate the central topic: to yearn for connection and order in a world where close ties may be eradicated in a spur of the moment. Besides, survival is depicted to exist in the cruel world by Astrid's life.
A fatal flaw in the novel lies with the main character, although she is entertaining, she behaves in a form that the reader may not understand. Astrid is a girl who is very intelligent and likable. However, it could be her poor writing or complex childhood that makes it somewhat difficult to comprehend as a teenager. At times she is anxious that her mother has something evil cooking, which we are not shown any clues pointing to that from her mother's behavior.
Furthermore, when Astrid is 14 years old, she develops a weird fetish or becomes a sexual creature. For example, she seduces an older adult in his fifties; after that, she turns this sexuality off like it never happened, to make matters worse the reader is not told why. Thus, a significant issue in White Oleander is that the reader is asked to empathize with Astrid, a character they do not specifically understand.
White Oleander is a fiction novel. Some of the books that are in the same group as this novel are "She's Come Undone", "The Handmaid's Tale", and "Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood". This book is categorized as chick flicks since it appeals more to a youthful female audience. With the numerous themes (for example, child abuse and mother and daughter relationships), I would recommend the novel to young adult readers since it makes you question life from a more critical perspective. The book is just exquisitely amazing. A comparison of it would be a beautiful sunset that plays to one's conscience while seducing and penetrating all his or her senses. There's also a movie version for those movie lovers out there.
Overall, the novel is a good read. You guys should check It out!
Fitch, Janet. “White Oleander: Paperback.” Barnes & Noble, Little, Brown and Company, 1 May 2000, www.barnesandnoble.com/w/white-oleander-janet-fitch/1100304529.