Title: Katie.com
Author: Katherine Tarbox
Genre: Biography
Katie.com is the horrifying tale of how a young 13-year old girl falls prey to an online predator. Katie who is living in New Canaan, Connecticut, one of the most affluent towns is Connecticut, is filled with confusion, hate for herself and fells as if one has the time to love her, not that they want to. She doesn't know who to turn to until she meets Mark. "Mark" is 23 years old and from California, she meets him in an online teen chat room. They exchange phone number online and over a six month period they talk to each other regularly. A lot changes over this time, such as Katie starts to drift from her best friend Karen and finds a new friend named Ashley. She also transitions to high school, and her mother seems to have even less time for her with her work schedule, while Katie continues to do swimming which she is starting to dislike. She talks to Mark about all of this, and he listens to her, consoles her and comforts her, making Katie trust him more than ever and start to feel as if she is mature, having a real relationship. Even when she is unsure and worried of things such as their age difference, she reassures her that things are fine and that love "has no boundaries" yet still warns her not to mention their conversations to any adults or friends. Yet things change when Katie and Mark decide to meet up at the hotel she will stay at for one of her swim meets. So, that weekend later in the night, she sneaks down to Mark's room after he calls her. As she leaves her friend Ashley attempts to stop her, but Katie is stubborn saying, "if anythings wrong you'll know where to find me" giving her the room number. From then on, the book goes on to explain what happens when Katie find out the "Mark" is really 41 year-old Frank. It gives a terrifying insight into the mind of someone who cannot understand or comprehend why someone who they think loves them could ever hurt them.
I enjoyed this book, because I thought it gave such an interesting view on something that is happening to someone who is practically the same age as me. To see how much "Mark" manipulated Katie into think that he truly cared about her was frightening but also helpful to know that since nowadays the internet is such a big part of everyones life it's good to know the warning signs of a predator. I think if someone enjoys this book, they should definitely watch the movie Trust, directed by David Schwimmer.
Coincidentally, yesterday I was looking up the Movie Trust and I really want to watch it. And when I started reading your ORR, I was thinking the plot was similar to the movie. :)
ReplyDeleteI think this book would be very interesting to read and very informational. We don't realize it but this happens very often. People are tricked into thinking the person they are talking to are the same age as them and they become great friends, until they meet in real life.