"More than a stunning debut. It is the announcement of a bold new literary voice"
—Stephen Chbosky, author of The Perks of Being a Wallflower

It’s been so long since you’ve been gone, but it feels just like yesterday that you were here. I remember when I first saw your movie, “Uptown Girls” where you co-stared with Dakota Fanning. It seems so weird seeing you in that now. You were the daughter of a deceased rock star and his wife. Your character, Molly, didn’t really grow up at all because, in a sense, her childhood was ripped from her. I can’t imagine having my childhood ripped from me. It would suck, but then I remember one scene in the movie where Molly tells Rae that she’s scared. I didn’t understand what she had meant when I was a little girl, but I do now. I understand how scary becoming an adult can be. I’ll never admit this to anyone else, but I can admit it to you. I’m scared to be an adult. I’m scared of moving on because when you move on you lose people. You lose friends and I don’t want to lose the people I have right now. They’ve been my family these four miserable years of high school. We’ve been through so much and I know that a few of them are still so broken inside that I wonder if they’ll ever be fixed. I wish they could see what I see. They make me happy and I’m proud for how long they’ve fought to stay another night. I’m not really sure where this letter is going, but when I write I can always get my feelings across more clearly. I feel comfortable behind my words. Words have a lot of power no matter if you write or speak them.
In “Uptown Girls” you use the spinning teacups ride as a metaphor for your life and I understand that, too. I wonder if Molly ever got tired of the ride, though. I wonder if there was ever a time when she considered jumping off the ride even if it meant she would get hurt in doing so. I wonder if she ever considered ending it all. I know she said that she wouldn’t dare get off, but still I wonder if there was ever a time when she wanted to. I wonder if you ever got tired of it. I wonder if you were ever scared to grow up.