I have always been a massive Jacqueline Wilson fan. I loved the Tracy Beaker books when I was younger, and also the Girls in Love series. I was even lucky enough to meet Jacqueline Wilson a few years ago, when she appeared at the Bath Children's Literature Festival, and I interviewed her. She was so lovely! I even waited in line with girls aged 9 and 10 to get her to sign my old battered copy of Tracy Beaker! But I had not read Vicky Angel, and when I saw it on the list I was excited to embrace my inner child, and read it.The thing I like about Jacqueline Wilson is that she is not afraid to cover issues like death in her books. She may be writing for children, but death affects them too. Children view death in a different way to adults, and this book shows how a child copes.
Vicky Angel is the story of Jade, who loses her best friend Vicky in a tragic road accident, which she believes is her fault. She wishes that she could see Vicky again, and lo and behold she does, as she appears as a ghost. However she is always there, stopping Jade from getting on with her life and making new friends. Keeping the guilt that Jade feels alive.
The idea of ghosts is really interesting. Some people believe in them, and feel people once they have passed away. Some scoff at the idea, and believe once you are dead that is it. Vicky Angel is told from the view point of a child in year nine at school. It shows that Jade is so desperate not to lose Vicky. Whether Vicky is there as
a ghost, or whether she is just a fragment of Jade's mind is never revealed. You are left to make up your own mind.
I enjoyed this book. It was easy to read (probably as it is a children's book!) and I finished it in a day. It was also nice to take a trip down memory lane with one of Jacqueline Wilson's books. The style is so familiar.
Rating: 8/10
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