Flinn, Alex. (2002). Breathing Underwater. New York: Harper Collins Children's Books, 272 pp.

Grade range: 10-12

Genre: contemporary fiction

Summary and Critique

Nick is rich, popular, handsome, and intelligent, but he hides his shameful secret from his peers: his father hits him. When Nick meets beautiful, talented Caitlin, he believes she is the answer to his problems; however, their relationship does nothing more than ignite new problems for him. Nick's possessiveness and jealousy quickly turn to control and rage until this unhealthy relationship results in a restraining order against him and a mandatory sentence to participate in family violence class. The story unfolds in a dual time frame, told partly in retrospect through the journal Nick is required to keep for the judge and in real time as a narrative of the time after the restraining order.

This is an intense and realistic view of dating violence and the consequences of one's actions. The author has an excellent grasp on the adolescent mind, heart, and language. The dialogue, the main character's thoughts, and the journal entries all read like a teenager wrote it. It is well written, has a strong message, and teenagers will be able to relate to it. Although there is a racial mix of characters in the family violence class, the novel is written from the point of view of a rich, Caucasian boy and therefore some students may have difficulty relating to it.

Awards

ALA Top Ten Books for Young Adults

Maryland Black-Eyed Susan Award Winner, 2004

Themes/Topics

Families

Friends and Enemies

Challenges and Triumphs

Love, Sex, and Romance

Author Information

Alex Flinn is a law school graduate who has tried domestic violence cases and volunteered at a shelter for battered women and their children. Breathing Underwater is her first novel and is based on her experiences with domestic violence cases in court and in her volunteer work.

For more information on Alex Flinn:

http://www.alexflinn.com/ Flinn's home page. Provides a bibliography, a biography, her current schedule, and discussion/lesson ideas.

Media Connections

Movies

Relationship Series: Boyfriend/Girlfriend (1996) Defines and discusses romantic relationships and their characteristics.

Twisted Love: Dating Violence Exposed (1996) A segment from PBS's In the Mix Series. Addresses dating violence among teenagers.

Ever After (1998) An adaptation of Cinderella. A light-hearted take on a budding love in the midst of an abusive family situation.

The Princess Bride (1987) The relationship between a beautiful young woman and her true love is threatened by the selfish love of a prince.

Dying Young (1991) A lonely woman falls in love with a leukemia stricken man.

Titanic (1997) The quintessential love story contrasting a controlling unhealthy relationship with a healthy, loving affair.

Online Resources

http://www.austin-safeplace.org/ SafePlace Web site: SafePlace is the amalgamation of The Rape Crisis Center and Battered Women's Shelter which provides prevention, intervention, education, and advocacy to the community so that women, children, and men may lead safe and healthy lives. They exist to end sexual and domestic violence and abuse.

http://www.pbs.org/inthemix/educators/date_viol.html PBS Discussion Guide: This Web site is the discussion guide to the above In the Mix video. It includes a guide on using the program, list excellent questions to guide teacher and students, information on obtaining the program, a list of resources, and early warning signs.

http://www.pbs.org/inthemix/educators/lessons/dateviol2/index.html PBS Dating Violence Lesson Plan

http://www.mwaves.org/ Making Waves. Website for Teens about what constitutes healthy and unhealthy relationships.

http://www.self-esteem-nase.org/ National Association for Self-Esteem. Provides information about self-esteem as well as activities and resources for building self-esteem.

Related Texts

Dessen, Sarah. (2002). Dreamland. New York: Puffin Books, 250 pp. A sixteen-year old girl suffers at the hand of her abusive boyfriend.


Anderson, Laurie Halse. (1999). Speak. New York: Farrar Straus Giroux. 197pp. A socially ostracized girl is raped at a party and becomes even more withdrawn from her peers than before.

Shakespeare. (2003). Romeo and Juliet. New York: Cambridge University Press. 266pp. Two teenagers fall in love, but their love affair is forbidden by their feuding families.

Havelin, Kate. (2000). Dating: 'What Is a Healthy Relationship?' (Perspectives on Relationships). Mankato, Minn: Lifematters Press, 64 pp. Offers advice and insight on finding, developing, and maintaining a healthy romantic relationship.

Teaching Ideas

(1) "SafePlace Program" Invite SafePlace to come into the classroom and share their Expect Respect program, which is dedicated to the prevention of dating and sexual violence and the promotion of safe and healthy relationships for all youth. The Expect Respect program provides a series of classroom presentations during class time for middle and high school youth on the topics of dating violence and sexual assault, sexual harassment, and healthy relationships. For information contact Barri Rosenbluth Director of School-based Services, (512) 356-1628 brosenbluth@austin-safeplace.org.

(2) "Literary Newscasts" A simple version is to have one or two students, sitting behind a desk at the front of the room, serve as news anchors, reporting on the events from Breathing Underwater. Imitating television newscasters, they report on the most recent plot twists. To make it a bit more complex, they can then cut away to a reporter live at the scene who provides more details about the story and interviews one or more of the characters. To bring more students into the newscasts, you can add other expert commentators such as a psychologist or counselor regarding the effects of abuse, or an expert regarding teen relationships, or a survivor of domestic abuse or a recovered abuser. (Students can be required to actually interview these people). These interviews give students the opportunity to do research in preparation for their performances. The newscasts also help students view the literature from multiple perspectives and points of view.

(3) "Create a Website" Students will be in charge of designing and developing website. Some ideas for sections to include: awareness, signs of abusive relationships, FAQ, hotline information, other resources, chat room, posting questions, etc. Students could work in groups where each group is responsible for a certain section on the site.

(4) "Understanding Healthy Relationships" Students research"what makes a healthy relationship," finding quotes, stories, pictures, examples, etc. and create something (i.e. collage, book, essay, model, webpage, etc.) to demonstrate their understanding of a healthy relationship. They could also choose to research characteristics of an unhealthy relationship.

(Review written by Meredith Townley and edited by Jennifer E. Moore)