Chapter 4, Broken Summary and Analysis

In 1980, Wurtzel's father walks out on her for good. In the years before he finally left, Wurtzel's mother had run out of money and had to take her father to court in order to get any money. Her world becomes a constant battle between lawyers and court appointments.

She tries to fit in and be normal, but fails miserably. She finally resigns herself to her depressed personality, and this resignation gives her some stability. She tries to shelter herself by being a perfect student with zombielike commitment to getting straight A's and appearing flawless — at least on paper. In this vein, a boy named Zachary comes along and they start dating, much to Wurtzel's astonishment. When her mother sees her dating this ideal catch, she relaxes, thinking that Wurtzel cannot be that boy to have attracted a boy...