Runaway Girl Escaping Life on the Streets

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In the beginning of Runaway Girl, Carissa, a second grader, is thrown out the house by her stepfather, Steve. Her mother, who watched, never checked to see if she was okay. (Phelps & Warren 2012, 3). The beginning was only the first part of her struggles of her life. When her mother and Steve were married, Carissa had to live with not just her blood related brothers and sisters, but her step brothers and sisters as well. There were eleven of them, plus her mother and Steve, in a house not fit for thirteen people. Carissa felt like she was not supposed to be part of her family and wanted to leave. (Phelps & Warren 2012, 6). Before the chaos of a new family, her mother was married to her biological dad. She explained how life was different and less chaotic. Their family was Jehovah witnesses but her dad wasn’t really a part of it. His refusal to be a part of this religion and the mother feeling more superior ended their marriage. (Phelps & Warren 2012, 10-11). When Carissa turned ten, the family moved to Coalinga where Steve purchased a new place for them to stay. She started school but ended up being disobedient towards the staff. She was also distant from her family; never around for the most part. (Phelps & Warren 2012, 16-17). During the summer, she started her menstrual cycle and started wearing makeup; her family saw her as a different person.(Phelps & Warren 2012, 33). On her birthday, she was going to have a real birthday party but instead she went to a strangers house, gave the birthday money to him, and he brought back alcohol. After that incident she stayed at her friend Zizi’s house, but didn’t tell her mother where she was. When her mother found her, she was grounded until she turned eighteen. (Phelps & Warren 2012, 35)... ... middle of paper ... ... who actually care enough to get them out of a bad situation. The people, who cared about her future, wanted her in school because they knew she could do great things, and she did. Carissa had to go through tough times like; marriage and divorce, an engagement terminated, and health issues to get to where she is in life now. You have to go through things to find out how strong you are and what you’re able to put yourself. Mrs. W got her to love math again and she ended up going to law school because she wanted to help people like her. She was most successful when she actually was able to tell her story and made it into a documentary. Bibliography Phelps, C., & Warren, L. (2012). Runaway Girl Escaping Life on the Streets, One Helping Hand At a Time. New York: Penguin Group. Vito F. Gennaro, K. C. (2012). Juvenile Justice Today. New Jersey : Pearson Prentice Hall.

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