Add this copy of A House for Jonnie O. to cart. $3.99, good condition, Sold by Ageless Pages rated 1.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Cottonwood, AZ, UNITED STATES, published by Bantam Books.
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Seller's Description:
Good. Joanna Olsen, aka Jonnie O, lives for movies, movie magazines, and celebrity gossip. Her reality, set in mid-1970's Los Angeles, is that at just-16 she's 6 months pregnant by a summer romance and is herself the product of an unhappy and eventually broken home.
Add this copy of House for Jonnie O to cart. $4.14, fair condition, Sold by Reliant Bookstore rated 1.0 out of 5 stars, ships from El Dorado, KS, UNITED STATES, published 1978 by Bantam Doubleday Dell.
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Seller's Description:
Fair. This book is a well used but readable copy. Integrity of the book is still intact with no missing pages. May have notes or highlighting. This item shows signs of water damage. Cover image on the book may vary from photo. Ships out quickly in a secure plastic mailer.
Add this copy of A House for Jonnie O to cart. $5.93, very good condition, Sold by ThriftBooks-Atlanta rated 5.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Brownstown, MI, UNITED STATES, published 1977 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
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Seller's Description:
Very good. A copy that has been read, but remains in excellent condition. Pages are intact and are not marred by notes or highlighting, but may contain a neat previous owner name. The spine remains undamaged. An ex-library book and may have standard library stamps and/or stickers. At ThriftBooks, our motto is: Read More, Spend Less.
Add this copy of A House for Jonnie O. to cart. $7.00, good condition, Sold by General Eclectic Books rated 1.0 out of 5 stars, ships from New Gloucester, ME, UNITED STATES, published 1976 by Boston: HOUGHTON, MIFFLIN, 1976.
Add this copy of A House for Jonnie O. to cart. $7.33, fair condition, Sold by ThriftBooks-Baltimore rated 4.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Halethorpe, MD, UNITED STATES, published 1977 by Houghton Mifflin.
Add this copy of House for Jonnie O to cart. $8.05, very good condition, Sold by Redbrick Books rated 5.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Springfield, MA, UNITED STATES, published 1978 by Bantam Books (Mm).
Add this copy of A House for Jonnie O. to cart. $18.00, like new condition, Sold by Between the Covers-Rare Books rated 5.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Gloucester City, NJ, UNITED STATES, published 1977 by Houghton Mifflin Co.
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Seller's Description:
Fine in Near Fine jacket. First edition. Fine in near fine dustwrapper. Book is a very nice copy, like new. Dustwrapper lightly rubbed at spine ends and corners. Please Note: This book has been transferred to Between the Covers from another database and might not be described to our usual standards. Please inquire for more detailed condition information.
Add this copy of House for Jonnie O to cart. $37.15, good condition, Sold by Bonita rated 4.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Newport Coast, CA, UNITED STATES, published 1978 by Bantam Doubleday Dell.
Add this copy of A House for Jonnie O to cart. $94.60, good condition, Sold by Bonita rated 4.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Newport Coast, CA, UNITED STATES, published 1976 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt.
Joanna Olsen, aka Jonnie O, lives for movies, movie magazines, and celebrity gossip. Her reality, set in mid-1970's Los Angeles, is that at just-16 she's 6 months pregnant by a summer romance and is herself the product of an unhappy and eventually broken home. Her mother has moved on and is dating someone Jonnie thinks could never hold a candle to her father--at least to the ideal father she would rather remember.
When Jonnie's pregnancy became obvious, it was recommended that she leave her school and transfer into another one just for pregnant teens. She doesn't like the school itself, but she has made a few good friends who transferred there about the same time she did and are about as far along--except for Thalia, who bursts into the classroom a few pages in, loaded down with car bed containing her 8-pound son, whom she's already introducing to the good things in life....see what you think. At least Jonnie gets to watch movies during class--just not the kind she likes.
Jonnie herself has actually finally tracked down her babydaddy, Billy Veller, and he's on his way back to see her--she just had to make an outrageous promise first. She insists on believing everything will work out once they're together again. Determinedly she knocks on every bit of wood and uses every other luck-summoner--even asking teachers for advice, which for her is a desperate move. When she learns that her own father is coming to see her, that's just too much good luck at once--how can she keep something big from coming along to spoil it? But all she has to do is look around--her friends are experiencing plenty of "bad luck" with their babydaddies and their own families. Finally it's all too much and the only solution seems to be for the 4 girls to rent a house of their own! "The adults" can't believe it, but the girls are determined. Ergo, the book's title as well as the title of one of the chapters--A HOUSE FOR JONNIE O.
This is a vibrant book--maybe TOO vibrant for some; the girls tend to EMPHASIZE EVERY other WORD, so there are bound to be SOME times there seems no REASON to emphasize THIS or THAT word. But these girls have plenty to vent about, not all of it their own fault or making. "I suffered! I'm 'titled [entitled]!" shouts Thalia, a proud African-American young mother of the next generation of proud African-Americans, who hopes that her son has all of the good qualities of his father without his bad qualities, such as ducking out of responsibility instead of "stepping up." Ada, a Native American, is similarly proud of her heritage and indignant about displays of injustice toward herself, her boyfriend, and "their people." Jonnie and the others can't understand what Maryanne, a pretty and pious Catholic girl, sees in her F.O.B. or why she sticks up for him when they put him down. Then there's learning-disabled Antoinette, the truest example of a baby having a baby, struggling even more painfully for acceptance and love.
Will Jonnie come to understand her teachers, especially the one who insists on teaching her about poetry and trying to explain why she needs to do so? Will Jonnie come to understand her mother? What's behind all the riddles spoken by counselor "Donald Duck"? Is there a "happily ever after" anywhere--even in Hollywood? The way Blossom Elfman presents Jonnie and the others will have you rooting for them, not only that they get what they want, but that they get what is truly best for them and they realize it.
JONNIE O is based on Elfman's experiences as a teacher at a "pregnant school"--as any one of the teachers with whom Jonnie insists on locking heads instead of trying to make minds meet. She has crafted an enjoyable book that was worth my long search for it. The first time I ever heard of it was on one of those front- or back-page booklists-- "If you liked this book, here are more you might enjoy"--only this was titled "Running Away--You Can't and You Don't Have To!" Other books listed were Sue Ellen Bridgers' HOME BEFORE DARK and NOTES FOR ANOTHER LIFE. I say, if you like this, you might try Gloria D. Miklowitz's UNWED MOTHER.
