A girl’s life online is a really important read for teenagers and parents alike. Katies story is disturbingly realistic and with the online world growing more abundant everyday, it is important to keep the dangers of the internet in the back of our minds because the truth is that they do still exist. Like many young adolescent’s, Katie built her ideal image of beauty based on what she read in the magazines and saw on t.v. This is a huge wake up call for media outlets worldwide to realize they are sending incorrect messages to the youth of today. I remember feeling very similar to Katie as a middle schooler, and wanting to be both skinnier and taller to look like the models that I admired. Luckily for me, I did not fall into the same trap as Katie did with an online predator.
The meeting between Katie and Mark really got my heart pumping. I was nervous and anxious from the second she knocked on the door. I got extremely creeped out when Mark asked Katie to check out the hotel bathroom with him. “He waited until I started moving and then placed his hand on my back to direct me. No one had ever steered me like that before. And with his touch I suddenly realized how uncomfortable I felt with him.” (92) As I read this quote I literally felt like I was in the room with both of them. I couldn’t imagine actually going through what Katie was experiencing. Part of me has sympathy for her and the other part of me thinks she was foolish and made some terrible decisions. Either way, there is a lesson to be learned from Katie’s actions.
As I read the book I payed attention to my emotions towards Katie and Mark. I knew that if I were not an adult and rather a teenager I would have viewed everything differently, but I couldn’t help but look at the book objectively. A huge feeling of relief came over me when Katie’s mom knocked on the hotel room door and practically saved her life. However, I couldn’t imagine if I would feel the same way if I was in Katie’s shoes. I can understand why she was humiliated and embarrassed. However, this was truly a miracle and one can only hope that if their kids were in the same position, they would have the opportunity to rescue them as well.
Overall, this book was very grounding and reminds me to always be cautious online. There has been so many developments with the internet that people get absorbed by all of the excitement and forget about the true hazards. I think that literature pieces like this one are important for all generations to keep a realistic outlook regarding the internet.
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