Outskirts Press, INC.

Valerie Bernowski: broken-home princess, obsessive-compulsive perfectionist, and... Catholic school survivor?

Valerie Bernowski hates her school, her plaid uniform skirt, and her flat feathered hair. She also hates being teased and called "polock" so much, she tells everyone she's Swedish.

When Valerie finds out her parents are getting divorced her world turns upside down. She begins to rebel against the Catholic faith and the ones who push it on her; her mother, Sister Mary Angelina, and even Father "Fingers."

Valerie's story begins in the mid-'80s, when new wave was big and the hairstyles were even bigger. Her tales unfold through intertwining chapters of flashbacks and present day reflections. Her bumpy road to self-discovery is paved with a cynical sense of humor, a longing for love, and a struggle to find faith.

Will Valerie realize that in order to move forward, she needs to let go of the pain of the past and the fear of her future?

Find out in CONFESSIONS OF A CATHOLIC SCHOOLGIRL

"Kneel. Sit. Stand. Kneel. Sit. Stand. Kneel. Sit. Stand!"
Sister Mary Angelina bellows these words to a congregation of frightened eighth graders at St. Cecilia's Catholic Church in southwest Detroit sometime in the mid-1980s. Almost twenty years later, those angry commands from the most powerful nun known to the class of 1986 have not been forgotten. They are engraved into my mind and soul like a first love's name on a silverplated I.D. bracelet. Not physically around anymore, but mentally stamped in my brain for eternity. Sister's words help to create the woman I am today--Valerie Bernowski; Catholic school survivor, broken-home princess, and obsessive-compulsive perfectionist.