For The May Queen

Kate Evans 

Vanilla Heart Publishing 

In For the May Queen, Kate Evans recounts all of the juicy details of Norma Rogers' 1981 freshman year college experience. For Norma, life in the dorms is spent experimenting with alcohol, drugs, and sex. Evans writes candidly about these subjects, sparing no sordid detail. Throughout the novel, she develops each character in Norma’s life—from loud-mouthed pot-smoking best friend Liz to quirky old soul "Chuck." These people become Norma’s surrogate family and remain in her life long after freshman year. 

Anyone who has experienced campus life, whether in 1981 or 2009, knows a student like Norma Rogers. She is that girl from freshman year. She is the girl who gets drunk and plays strip poker on the first night of college. The girl who sleeps with a few guys from the dorm floor before the week is through. You either knew Norma Rogers in college or you were Norma Rogers in college. 

Regardless of your personal experience, you will find that the themes in Evans’ novel are universally relatable. At heart, Norma is essentially finding herself. Throughout her first year, she clumsily learns to navigate her newly found freedom and the choices it brings. Norma learns more about who she is and what she believes in. Norma, or "Norma Jean" as Chuck affectionately calls her, prematurely judges some of the people around her only to discover an unexpected truth in the end. 

As a feminist reader, I hoped that by the end of the novel Norma would ditch her bad habits and transform into a strong self-assured woman. While she does have an exciting career in her adult life, Norma's attitude towards men is still somewhat reminiscent of her college days. 

For the May Queen is a story about a wild year in the life of a seventeen-year-old. Evans borrows the title of her novel from the Led Zeppelin classic "Stairway to Heaven." The next line of the song reads, "There are two paths you can go by, but in the long run there’s still time to change the road you're on." This is particularly true for Norma Rogers. The events and choices of freshman year shape her forever and play a pivotal role in her journey towards adulthood. 

Review by Samara Sousa