Diary of a Street Kid Summary

This book is a true story about a girl named Evelyn Lau that kept a journal of her life and what she did in her 2 year experience as a young Chinese Canadian woman. She left home because she could no longer stand her parents’ oppression of her desires to write poetry. Her parents thought she needed to do something more with her life but she didn't. Her running away from home helped her to have a successful career as a young writer.

Her book starts off by starting on the first day after she ran away from home: March 22, 1988. Staying with friends at first, she attempts suicide on the day she is turned in to the authorities. Recovering at a mental hospital, Lau falls into Canada’s well-developed social safety net designed to rescue troubled teenagers.
For months, Lau tries to put distance between her old and new self as she self-destructively experiments with drugs and sex. Twice she goes to the United States only to turn herself in to be shipped back home to Vancouver. She frustrates social workers and her two psychiatrists, who are unable to prevent her descent into teenage prostitution and drug abuse.

Throughout the book I became aware of her extremely low self-esteem and her self-loathing, which her parents’ perfectionist behavior has instilled in her. She can't seem to be able to value herself, even as her budding career as a writer begins with awards and letters of acceptance for her poetry.
Despite her ability to keep up with her writing, Lau refuses to stop hurting herself. She becomes attached to unsuitable men such as Larry, a drug addict on a government-sponsored recovery program, which he abuses. To keep Lau, Larry provides her the potent pharmaceuticals without which she could not abide his presence.

In the end, Lau frees herself of Larry, lives on her own in a state-provided apartment, and readies herself for college. Her writing has sustained her through dark hours, and, at sixteen, she is only a short time away from turning the journals into a manuscript.

In my opinion I found that runaway does not have a real closure. The reader leaves Lau as she seems to have overcome the worst of her self-abusive behavior, yet her life is still a puzzle waiting to be sorted out completely.

Comaprison from two books:
-Both give story of teenagers struggling through life on their own trying to find themselves.
Both writers.
-In the end of both books you see that even though at first you thought they were going to be in trouble in the end they end up happy and have made it through a big turning stage in their lives.

Summary of White Olenader:

I found this book to be really good and entertaining. for my reasearch paper I plan tohave my thesis about life exoeriences as in White Oleander the sutcases symbolized the different adventures she had and the things she learned at each new place she stayed at.

Everything in this book was about life experiences, love, finding yourself and learning that you can always learn something new at each new place you live. The next book I read is Runaway: Diary of a Street Kid.

This book I found was very similar to White Oleander as their was many of the same concepts that I saw in White Oleander.

Summary: Of Runaway: Diary of a Street Kid to come.

Chapter 32- end-- White Oleander

Two years later, Astrid moves out of Rena's and is 20 years old and living with Paul in a run down flat in Berlin, Germany. Astrid has spent a lot of her time and effort into buying suitcases and making them into artwork detailing the journey she has taken from her mothers imprisonment to her life with Rena. One afternoon Paul brings home a newspaper article reporting Ingrid's release from prison after winning her appeals trial and soon after this Barry commits suicide. Astrid acknowledges the power that her mother still has over her and even reveals her secret dream of going back to California. She never fulfills this dream, knowing that too much has happened and she would never fit into the daughter mold her mother wants from her. She also realizes that if she returns to California, she must abandon Paul, leaving him much like she has been abandoned so many times before. She embraces the life she has lived, the past that has made her who she is and accepts her mother's love, but continues to live the life she leads.

Notes:
book about life, new experiences and how each foster home was a turning stone into finding out who she really was.
Also about love and loneliness and how everyone wants to be loved and have someone to turn to when they need someone.

Chapter 26-32- White Oleander

Meanwhile, Ingrid has begun to build up a following of fans and admirers from prison, who all believe she is innocent. Ingrid and her lawyer begin to build up a case to get Ingrid released from prison. However, their case depends on Astrid — if she testifies that Ingrid did not murder Barry, Ingrid could probably get out, but if she testifies the truth, Ingrid could not win her case. In the middle of all of this Yvonne has her baby and Astrid is the one that sits with her the whole time. She doesn't even look at the baby and just gives it away. Shortly after this Yvonne decides she wants to move out and get an apartment with her boyfriend. Rena gives her some money and wishes her the best and then she is gone and within a week their is a new girl in her place named Tasha.

Astrid realizes that she is in a position of power over her mother, and tells her that unless she answers some of her questions, she will testify against her. Astrid asks Ingrid about her father and Barry and then Annie, Ingrid is shattered to learn that Astrid remembers Annie at all, and tells Astrid that Annie was a babysitter who Ingrid left Astrid with for over a year, making Astrid realizes why she fears abandonment from her mother. Astrid lets Ingrid know how damaged she is because of what Ingrid did to her, even going as far as becoming completely Gothic, Astrid gives Ingrid a choice, to have her testify or to have her return to the person her mother knew her as. Astrid ends up not testifying in the case.

Notes: Niki leaves in September.

Mother said that when she gets out she will leave Astrid alone and let her live her life.

Chapter 23- 26

Summary: Astrid's final home is with Russian immigrant Rena Grushenka. She intentionally chooses Rena over better prospective foster parents because she is devastated by Claire's death, and does not want to become part of a nuclear family. Astrid is afraid it would be too easy to forget the pain she has gone through. At Rena's, she lives with two other teenage girls named Niki and a pregnant girl named Yvonne. Astrid becomes very close friends with Niki and Yvonne and has sex with Rena's boyfriend Sergei, one night after getting high on acid with Niki. After this happened she begins to have memories of a woman named Annie.

To make money they must go through people's trash early in the morning looking for clothes. They then stitch them up and then sell them to make more money.

One day Astrid goes to the comic store and she finds that Paul did leave her a package. She also has a new case worker named Mrs. Davis. At this time she has stopped writing her mom.

Notes: Her new life. new experienecs

Chapter 22-23- White Olenader

Summary: For this short period of time she is placed in MacLaren Children's Center (known as Mac), which is known as a final resort for foster kids without a placement. Astrid meets a boy named Paul Trout, and they bond through the shared experience of living in foster care.

Notes: Finally finds a friends she feels she can talk too. Paul wants to keep in touch so he tells her to leave letters at a comic place when she gets out and this way they can keep in touch.

New Character- Paul Trout- no family, her friend, artist.

Chapter 16-22- White Olenader

Summary: 4th Home--
Astrid is taken in by a former actress named Claire Richards, and her husband, Ron. Claire does everything she can to ensure Astrid's comfort. For once, Astrid is doing well in school and pursuing art. She is even enrolled in all honor courses and Astrid finally thinks she is loved and has a home where she can do well in. Astrid finally finishes the 10th grade and is very happy that she did. Claire bought her a necklace as a present and for most of the Summer Ron was gone. Astrid's favoutire place to go with Claire was to the museum as each painting had more and more meaning. Astrid continues corresponding with her mother in prison, but Astrid becomes increasingly bitter towards Ingrid. Claire also starts talking to Ingrid who in the end helps lead Claire to suicide. She keeps telling Claire she is right and he is having an affair. She Claire suspects that Ron is having an affair because Ron keeps making constant trips away from home and Astrid watches their fights worsen. Ingrid thinks that Astrid is too happy where she is and doesn't want to get replaced so she makes Cliare goes insane. Astrid felt like this was the family she never had and she didn't want to lost this. In April, Astrid finds that her mom is sending Claire letters about how she should just give up as it will be easier and that nobody loves her. Ron wants to make an effort so they go away to Oregon on a camping trip. They do everything together and Astrid can see that Claire is really happy. After New Years, Claire commits suicide by overdosing. By this point, Astrid is 17. At the end, Astrid finally finds out they only took her in so that she could keep Claire happy and distracted. She was a watcher as Ron already knew she was suicidal and thought that aStrid could make her change but she couldn't.

Note: Astrid is in grade 10 still. She is never good ebough for anything. She becomes a failer and realizes she will never be able to have a family.

New Character: Ron-Father
Claire- mother and actor.
-really want to adopt children.

look up: debussy: french composer
mughal: