When he swings back into their life, Aideen’s mother drops everything for his attention, and when he inevetibly leaves, she chooses the need to fill that void above all else: stability, shelter, food, Aideen’s own emotional needs. Aideen and her mother are the secret/side family, and her father always promises to leave his “main” family for them, but never does. Aideen’s mother isn’t default violent alcoholic we often see: she’s a woman who-intentionally or not-places her desire to fill her own emotional void above all else. But deeper than that, Smyth has successfully and subtly portrayed a child raised in an unstable environment. We saw it in The Falling in Love Montage, with Saorise’s fear of the future interfering with her ability to enjoy the present, and we see it in Not My Problem, where Aideen helps others but cannot help herself.Īideen is a great character: her personal struggles make her sympathetic. Something I love about Smyth’s books is how well she mirrors the book’s theme in the protagonist’s character arc it’s very satisfying to read. As more students come to Aideen for unconventional solutions, Aideen’s own life unravels as her estranged father creeps back into her home life, endangering her mother’s precarious sobriety and her best friend Holly grows more distant than ever as Aideen’s problem-solving brings her and Maebh closer. It starts when she pushes the principal’s perfectionist daughter down the stairs-at Maebh’s own request. Not My Problem is about Aideen, a teen with a knack for solving her classmates’ problems, but a messy personal life.

Come to me with your stupid problem and I’ll fix it it’ll only cost you a limb.” “Yes, I’m a regular teenage troubleshooter. It’s actually really selfless of you because it must be hard to push someone down the stairs and not know if you’re going to permanently disfigure them or something.”

Everyone needs help sometimes and sure, you don’t think help is going to look like pushing someone down the stairs and intentionally injuring them, but you just never know. You know, you really helped out Meabh here. “And I think it’s really great what you’ve done, Aideen. – Seriously, Smyth, I need a short story set six months later or something I have closure issues! – The ending will not 100% satisfy everyone – Tackles painful realities without being a bummer Published by HarperCollins | HarperTeen ImprintĪlcoholism alcoholic parent.

Ciara smyth not my problem