The novel is structured with chapters containing the narratives of Suzette and her daughter, Hanna. Suzette is a compulsive cleaner, with health issues – Crohn’s disease. Hanna wishes her mother would ease up on her tidiness and give her some freedom, but she refuses to speak to anyone. Hanna knows what she wants to say but the words get stuck in her mouth. But the things she thinks about, with the possibility of acting on, is disturbing – she thinks about hurting and killing constantly, planning ways to be living alone with her father, Alex, and getting rid of her mother. For example, she actually tampers with her mother’s medication and keeps a journal, written in code, of ways to eliminate her mom. For me, this is not normal, at all. Maybe this girl needs to be locked away.
Suzette is not a confident person. She questions her worth as a mother and as a woman. Suffering from Crohn’s disease most of her life, she was not diagnosed until her teen years and suffered while in the care of a detached mother. She wants desperately to be a better mother to Hanna, but her daughter continually shuts her out and acts out against her mother when Hanna’s father is absent, making it seem that Suzette is the troubled one.
Suzette and Alex take Hanna to a child psychologist, as recommended, and enroll her in a school for troubled kids. Hanna, however, would rather stay home and does not want to go out to school. She makes plans to do something where she will no longer be welcome at this school. Her actions send a child to hospital and the staff inform her parents they can’t risk keeping a violent child, Hanna, at their school.
After the school incident, Alex is beginning to realize that Suzette may not be exaggerating about Hanna’s behavior after all. Hanna notices the change in her father’s behavior and blames her mother’s influence over him. She decides she must get rid of her mother right away – her father may be mad at her for a while, but will come around once he understands, she reasons. I keep reading, but fear what this little monster has in store for her mother – crap!
Hanna executes her plan, but thankfully, it didn’t work. Alex rushed home to help his wife and search the house for his daughter, now knowing the full extent of Hanna’s disturbing behavior. They call the psychologist to try to figure out what to do and what could be triggering this behavior. Just amazing, even then, they’re trying to rationalize Hanna’s behavior – my take – the kid’s a psycho – the Alfred Hitchcock type. The psychologist recommends a psychological evaluation for Hanna as soon as possible, with the remote-last-resort possibility of putting Hanna away in a facility.
Now, being caught in dirty deeds and confronted by both parents and a psychologist does not improve Hanna’s behavior. The novel ends with me thinking that maybe it is best if this child doesn’t grow up at all. With medical professionals thinking they can help Hanna, they underestimate her resolve and cunning. It is excellent the way the author speaks as a 7-year old child. You know exactly what Hanna is thinking, what she wants to do, making the reader think Suzette’s fear of her daughter is justified. In the end, this book leaves you haunted about Hanna’s and her parent’s future. Baby Teeth by Zoje Stage is definitely worth reading! Give yourself a Halloween treat.