100 Kick-Ass Female Characters: #4
4. Victoria "Vix" Leonard, as seen in Summer Sisters by Judy Blume
I have read every single book Judy Blume has ever written, but this one will always be my favorite. It is a book I can literally recite entire passages from, read until it fell apart, and now have it on my Kindle. And the reason I adore this book so much is Vix.
Female friendship fascinates me, and it's very rarely portrayed as it actually is. In this book, Vix is the "sidekick" to Caitlin, her best friend from childhood. It tracks the course of their lives from ages 12-30, is seen through multiple characters' POVs, but it is essentially Vix's book.
What makes Vix so kick-ass isn't that she finally grows a backbone and stands up to Caitlin; she doesn't. She plays the sidekick their entire lives, always still slightly in awe of Caitlin even when she's at her absolute worst. But it's the life and identity Vix builds for herself separate from Caitlin which makes her so amazing. She leaves behind a dysfunctional family and a life of relative poverty; she could easily coast off of the money Caitlin's family gives her, but she works herself to the bone every summer, graduates from Harvard, and makes a life for herself in NYC. She falls in love, realizes what can sustain a relationship at 17 is not what can sustain a relationship at 22, messes up, makes horrible decisions, but she keeps going. The one thing Vix frequently denies Caitlin is the agreement to give up her "boring" life and live frivolously with Caitlin. The near codependence of their relationship is still never enough to lure Vix away from the only thing she's ever wanted: stability.
And repeatedly turning down the one person whose opinion has always meant the most to you? Pretty kick-ass.
Previous kick-ass ladies
1. Wendy Moira Angela Darling (Peter Pan) 2. Anya Christina Emmanuella Jenkins (Buffy the Vampire Slayer) 3. Mathilda Lando (Leon)
I have read every single book Judy Blume has ever written, but this one will always be my favorite. It is a book I can literally recite entire passages from, read until it fell apart, and now have it on my Kindle. And the reason I adore this book so much is Vix.
Female friendship fascinates me, and it's very rarely portrayed as it actually is. In this book, Vix is the "sidekick" to Caitlin, her best friend from childhood. It tracks the course of their lives from ages 12-30, is seen through multiple characters' POVs, but it is essentially Vix's book.
What makes Vix so kick-ass isn't that she finally grows a backbone and stands up to Caitlin; she doesn't. She plays the sidekick their entire lives, always still slightly in awe of Caitlin even when she's at her absolute worst. But it's the life and identity Vix builds for herself separate from Caitlin which makes her so amazing. She leaves behind a dysfunctional family and a life of relative poverty; she could easily coast off of the money Caitlin's family gives her, but she works herself to the bone every summer, graduates from Harvard, and makes a life for herself in NYC. She falls in love, realizes what can sustain a relationship at 17 is not what can sustain a relationship at 22, messes up, makes horrible decisions, but she keeps going. The one thing Vix frequently denies Caitlin is the agreement to give up her "boring" life and live frivolously with Caitlin. The near codependence of their relationship is still never enough to lure Vix away from the only thing she's ever wanted: stability.
And repeatedly turning down the one person whose opinion has always meant the most to you? Pretty kick-ass.
Previous kick-ass ladies
1. Wendy Moira Angela Darling (Peter Pan) 2. Anya Christina Emmanuella Jenkins (Buffy the Vampire Slayer) 3. Mathilda Lando (Leon)