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The Girls

by Emma Cline

The pull of belonging, and its danger

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Awards & Recognition

  • Award recognition

    Los Angeles Times Book Prize finalist

    Finalist for the Los Angeles Times Book Prize.

  • Editorial selection

    The New York Times Book Review Editors' Choice

    Editors' Choice selection.

  • Author recognition

    Emma Cline: Granta Best of Young American Novelists

    Emma Cline is identified as one of Granta's Best of Young American Novelists.

AlbakiReads Editorial

The pull of belonging, and its danger

Set in Northern California at the violent end of the 1960s, Emma Cline’s novel centers on Evie Boyd, a lonely teenager captivated by a group of girls she sees in a park. Her fascination with Suzanne draws her into the orbit of a cult and its charismatic leader, and toward life at their isolated, run-down ranch. As Evie’s attachment deepens and she spends more time away from her mother and ordinary routines, the prospect of acceptance becomes entangled with approaching violence. The story’s frame brings together adolescence, social influence, and the risks of wanting to belong, with a historical setting shaped by the era’s upheaval.

Good fit for readers who enjoy

  • Readers interested in coming-of-age fiction set in late-1960s Northern California.
  • Those drawn to psychological fiction about cult influence, social belonging, and adolescent vulnerability.

Themes

Belonging and acceptanceAdolescence and identityCult influenceObsessionViolence

Based on publisher information and book metadata.

Book overview

THE INSTANT BESTSELLER - An indelible portrait of girls, the women they become, and that moment in life when everything can go horribly wrong

ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR: The Washington Post, NPR, The Guardian, Entertainment Weekly, San Francisco Chronicle, Financial Times, Esquire, Newsweek, Vogue, Glamour, People, The Huffington Post, Elle, Harper's Bazaar, Time Out, BookPage, Publishers Weekly, Slate

Northern California, during the violent end of the 1960s. At the start of summer, a lonely and thoughtful teenager, Evie Boyd, sees a group of girls in the park, and is immediately caught by their freedom, their careless dress, their dangerous aura of abandon. Soon, Evie is in thrall to Suzanne, a mesmerizing older girl, and is drawn into the circle of a soon-to-be infamous cult and the man who is its charismatic leader. Hidden in the hills, their sprawling ranch is eerie and run down, but to Evie, it is exotic, thrilling, charged--a place where she feels desperate to be accepted. As she spends more time away from her mother and the rhythms of her daily life, and as her obsession with Suzanne intensifies, Evie does not realize she is coming closer and closer to unthinkable violence.

Finalist for the Los Angeles Times Book Prize - Finalist for the National Book Critics Circle John Leonard Award - Shortlisted for The Center for Fiction First Novel Prize - The New York Times Book Review Editors' Choice - Emma Cline--One of Granta's Best of Young American Novelists

Praise for The Girls

"Spellbinding . . . a seductive and arresting coming-of-age story."--The New York Times Book Review

"Extraordinary . . . Debut novels like this are rare, indeed."--The Washington Post

"Hypnotic."--The Wall Street Journal

"Gorgeous."--Los Angeles Times

"Savage."--The Guardian

"Astonishing."--The Boston Globe

"Superbly written."--James Wood, The New Yorker

"Intensely consuming."--Richard Ford

"A spectacular achievement."--Lucy Atkins, The Times

"Thrilling."--Jennifer Egan

"Compelling and startling."--The Economist
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