It’s a fact that males are more prone to violence than females. Indeed, according to the U.S. Department of Justice, males account for 78.9 percent of the violent crimes committed in this country. But if nearly 80 percent of violent crimes are committed by males, around 20 percent are committed by females, which prompts one to ask what kind of girl or woman would commit a violent crime. Perhaps someone like Alex Craft, one of the central characters in Mindy McGinnis’ YA novel, The Female of the Species (Katherine Tegen Books, 2016).

Alex is a quiet, intelligent young woman who is not only prone to violence but also quite effective in meting it out.  The man who murdered her sister Anna found that out the hard way. The first chapter of the book focuses on the cold, calculating steps Alex took in preparation for killing her sister’s killer. And when the moment to strike arrived, Alex didn’t hesitate.

But in the chapters that follow, McGinnis shows there is more to Alex than violence and revenge. Though burdened by her sister’s death and her mother’s aimless, alcohol-drenched life, Alex begins to see a brighter, more-hopeful side to life with the help of two classmates. First, there’s Claire, better known as Peekay, who works with Alex as a volunteer at the local animal shelter. The two girls slowly develop a friendship that prompts them to look out for each other when trouble arises. Second is Jack Fisher, star athlete and top student, who becomes increasingly attracted to Alex after the two of them have a joint meeting with a guidance counselor. Alex begins to feel similar feelings toward Jack after he and his father pull her car out of a ditch.

Even while they grow closer to Alex, Jack and Peekay must deal with other issues. Peekay is still smarting over the sudden breakup with her boyfriend Adam, who is now dating high school beauty Branley Jacobs. Meanwhile, Jack, who once dated Branley, has to fend off her efforts to pull him away from Alex. I can’t say much more about the plot without spoilers, except to say that Alex discovers that when it comes to violence, what goes around, comes around.

In The Female of the Species, as in some of her other books, McGinnis demonstrates a remarkable ability to get inside her characters’ heads and express the hopes, fears, frustrations, and suspicions they experience. From chapter to chapter, she shifts her POV between Alex, Jack, and Peekay, and in so doing, clarifies how these three teens perceive a world that can be promising one moment and perilous the next.

It’s worth mentioning that the world inhabited by Peekay, Alex, Jack, and their classmates is a highly promiscuous one. Besides engaging in underage drinking, many of the teens are sexually active (maybe with protection, maybe not).  They also hang out late at night at an abandoned church, which also serves as a meeting place for serious drug users. At least some parents are aware of such activity. “We’re not stupid; we know you drink,” Peekay’s mom tells her and her friend Sara. “I’m just a dad who wants his girl to be safe,” her father adds.

There has been an effort in some places to ban Mindy’s books, including The Female of the Species. That may be because she shows us a side of teenage life that is disturbing, even frightening. That being the case, the proper response is not to ban her books, but to read them and learn from them.  If, like Peekay’s dad, we want our girls and boys “to be safe,” then the first step is to discover what they are doing in their free time and with whom they are spending it.