Big Mouth & Ugly Girl

Big Mouth & Ugly Girl

• Genre: Fiction; young adult realistic
• Originally Published: 2002
• Reading Level/Interest: Lexile 720L; grades 9-12
• Structure/Length: 49 chapters; approx. 288 pages; approx. 6 hours, 8 minutes on audio
• Protagonist and Central Conflict: High school students Matt Donaghy and Ursula Riggs form a close friendship when Matt’s reputation is damaged due to his “big mouth.” Ursula, known as “Ugly Girl” for her height and rough appearance, is well versed in harsh treatment from others and lends support to Matt.
• Potential Sensitivity Issues: Attempted suicide; ostracization, harassment, bullying; bomb threats, school shooting threats; profanity

Joyce Carol Oates, Author

• Bio: Born in 1938 in New York; novelist and short story writer; earned graduate degree in English and later was a professor of English at the University of Detroit, the University of Windsor, and Princeton University; established a literary magazine, The Ontario Review; awarded the National Book Award (Them) and the F. Scott Fitzgerald Award for Lifetime Achievement in American Literature; earned the PEN/Malamud Award for Excellence in Short Fiction; was a 2015 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction finalist (Lovely, Dark, Deep)
• Other Works: A Garden of Earthly Delights (1967); Bellefleur (1980); We Were the Mulvaneys (1996); Mudwoman (2012)
• Awards: ALA Best Books for Young Adults (2003)

CENTRAL THEMES connected and noted throughout this Teaching Unit:

• The Fallibility of Adults
• The Ubiquity of Social Performance
• The Damaging Effects of Rumors and Gossip

STUDY OBJECTIVES: In accomplishing the components of this Unit, students will:

• Develop an understanding of the social and cultural context surrounding Matt’s threat on the school and subsequent conflict.
• Analyze short paired texts and other resources to make connections via the text’s themes of The Fallibility of Adults, The Ubiquity of Social Performance, and The Damaging Effects of Rumors and Gossip.
• Plan and present an interview of a character based on character details from the novel.
• Analyze and evaluate the plot and character details to draw conclusions in structured essay responses regarding mistakes made by characters, comparisons between Matt and Ursula, and other topics.