Birthday Girl
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- Create Date：2021-06-10 07:53:56
- Update Date：2025-09-06
- Status：finish
- Author：Penelope Douglas
- ISBN：1976333083
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Summary
JORDAN
He took me in when I had nowhere else to go。
He doesn’t use me， hurt me， or forget about me。 He doesn’t treat me like I’m nothing， take me for granted， or make me feel unsafe。
He remembers me， laughs with me， and looks at me。 He listens to me， protects me， and sees me。 I can feel his eyes on me over the breakfast table， and my heart pumps so hard when I hear him pull in the driveway after work。
I have to stop this。 It can’t happen。
My sister once told me there are no good men， and if you find one， he’s probably unavailable。
Only Pike Lawson isn’t the unavailable one。
I am。
PIKE
I took her in， because I thought I was helping。
She’d cook a few meals and clean up a little。 It was an easy arrangement。
As the days go by， though， it’s becoming anything but easy。 I have to stop my mind from drifting to her and stop holding my breath every time I bump into her in the house。 I can’t touch her， and I shouldn’t want to。
The more I find my path crossing hers， though， the more she’s becoming a part of me。
But we’re not free to give into this。 She’s nineteen， and I’m thirty-eight。
And her boyfriend’s father。
Unfortunately， they both just moved into my house。
*BIRTHDAY GIRL is a stand-alone， contemporary romance suitable for ages 18+。
He took me in when I had nowhere else to go。
He doesn’t use me， hurt me， or forget about me。 He doesn’t treat me like I’m nothing， take me for granted， or make me feel unsafe。
He remembers me， laughs with me， and looks at me。 He listens to me， protects me， and sees me。 I can feel his eyes on me over the breakfast table， and my heart pumps so hard when I hear him pull in the driveway after work。
I have to stop this。 It can’t happen。
My sister once told me there are no good men， and if you find one， he’s probably unavailable。
Only Pike Lawson isn’t the unavailable one。
I am。
PIKE
I took her in， because I thought I was helping。
She’d cook a few meals and clean up a little。 It was an easy arrangement。
As the days go by， though， it’s becoming anything but easy。 I have to stop my mind from drifting to her and stop holding my breath every time I bump into her in the house。 I can’t touch her， and I shouldn’t want to。
The more I find my path crossing hers， though， the more she’s becoming a part of me。
But we’re not free to give into this。 She’s nineteen， and I’m thirty-eight。
And her boyfriend’s father。
Unfortunately， they both just moved into my house。
*BIRTHDAY GIRL is a stand-alone， contemporary romance suitable for ages 18+。
Reviews
Mocha Latte
，
OkayyyIt was ok。 I scanned through most of it。 Cole’s mother was a piece of work。 But it was just an ok read for me
Alex 3
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This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 -Su relacion fue desarrollada muy linda。-Me ponia un poco incomoda q este contantemente diciendo que era "una nena" a la mina q veia como fantasia sexual。-Me hubieran gustado mas escenas con tension entre los protagonistas。-Cole era un boludo， pero tenia potencial para ser un mejor personaje y tener mas desarrollo。-Los personajes secundarios casi q no aportan nada a la trama。 -Su relacion fue desarrollada muy linda。-Me ponia un poco incomoda q este contantemente diciendo que era "una nena" a la mina q veia como fantasia sexual。-Me hubieran gustado mas escenas con tension entre los protagonistas。-Cole era un boludo， pero tenia potencial para ser un mejor personaje y tener mas desarrollo。-Los personajes secundarios casi q no aportan nada a la trama。 。。。more
Sue
，
Jordan's life has certainly not been easy。 But she is strong willed and determined to make it on her own merits in life。 She hasn't has super luck in the men department and despite knowing she deserves better， just seems to be rolling along with whatever crumbs they may give her。 An older man， a dark theater and a connection that was certainly unexpected changes her， until she finds out he is her boyfriend's Dad。 Things are about to get really complicated and there are some major hurdles and gro Jordan's life has certainly not been easy。 But she is strong willed and determined to make it on her own merits in life。 She hasn't has super luck in the men department and despite knowing she deserves better， just seems to be rolling along with whatever crumbs they may give her。 An older man， a dark theater and a connection that was certainly unexpected changes her， until she finds out he is her boyfriend's Dad。 Things are about to get really complicated and there are some major hurdles and growing up to do。 The age gap is one thing but the fact that she is living in his house with his son？ That makes it a bit on the taboo side。 I enjoyed the push and pull and even until nearly the end， not knowing who would have that happy ending。 Steamy and well thought out and written。 。。。more
ELB
，
OMGGGG ok i havent read a book i could not for the life of me put down in a while now。 Granted， im obsessed like that but THIS BOOK！！ This book！！！！ Oh my heart！ It was perfect。 Douglas is perfect！ How can a writer get my stomach all twisted up in knots， make my heart beat faster and this book had ALL THE FEELS！！ I felt every emotion。 Plus， the hot monkey sex was just that。 Im on to read another book of hers lol。 I was up til 3something am， all blurry eyed trying to power through this book。 Dougl OMGGGG ok i havent read a book i could not for the life of me put down in a while now。 Granted， im obsessed like that but THIS BOOK！！ This book！！！！ Oh my heart！ It was perfect。 Douglas is perfect！ How can a writer get my stomach all twisted up in knots， make my heart beat faster and this book had ALL THE FEELS！！ I felt every emotion。 Plus， the hot monkey sex was just that。 Im on to read another book of hers lol。 I was up til 3something am， all blurry eyed trying to power through this book。 Douglas， u have a new fan。 。。。more
Orlandi Scheepers
，
Hello daddy PikePenelope writes about a love and a life that draws you in。 Jordan and Pike have a beautiful love story。 You just root for them。 Steamy and innovative scenes。！！！ Left a smile on my face the whole day。 Her obsession with the 80s and her great humor makes her a memorable character。
Little Red Writer
，
The second I learned about this book， I was dying to read it and I dropped everything else on my list。 I adore forbidden romances and was so excited to see how Penelope would go about getting Pike and Jordan together， with Cole， Jordan’s boyfriend and Pike’s son， still in the way。 I was not disappointed。Forget sleep， I read the whole thing in one night。~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Re-read？ Oh yes。 Those “daddy” jokes never get old。Recommend？ I’d probably even let you borrow my cop The second I learned about this book， I was dying to read it and I dropped everything else on my list。 I adore forbidden romances and was so excited to see how Penelope would go about getting Pike and Jordan together， with Cole， Jordan’s boyfriend and Pike’s son， still in the way。 I was not disappointed。Forget sleep， I read the whole thing in one night。~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Re-read？ Oh yes。 Those “daddy” jokes never get old。Recommend？ I’d probably even let you borrow my copy。 Probably。 I’d most likely lend it out and then start calling you almost immediately to check in because I realized I actually wasn’t okay with lending it out because I love it so much。HEA？ Yeah， baby！ There was a second where I was scared it was going to end with our two main people finding other people （and seriously， just a second。 Penelope only left us hanging for about a chapter）， and I was going to be pissed， but thankfully， wishes on candles do come true and I didn’t have to get pissed。~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~This is the first book of Penelope’s that I’ve read since I finished the Fall Away series， which was before Aflame was written （and I’m planning on keeping it that way since I have trouble with my favorite characters getting their futures all messed up， even if I know there’s another Happy Ending™）， and this is the first adult （new adult？） book of hers that I’ve read since Misconduct， which is one of my absolute favorite books of all time。 And now this book is right there with it。There is one thing I will mention that I wasn’t in love with about this book， and I’ll do it first so I get it out of the way:The age gap。 Now， I have nothing against large age gaps and forbidden romances—I’m all for love however it comes about—but this one was a bit of a stretch for me。 Ten years， sure。 Fifteen， we can make it work。 Almost twenty？ Mmmmm 。 。 。 it’s a push。 And with Jordan nineteen and Pike thirty-eight， and especially since Pike already has a kid who's Jordan’s age and her current boyfriend， it felt somewhat push-ish。 I’ve read books with big age gaps before， but something about this one made me struggle with it。 For me， it could be because my parents are older than Pike is and the whole teen love-interest thing felt odd。 It could also be because I have an uncle who married someone a few years older than my sister and had two kids in his late forties。 So maybe this book hit too close to home。However， Birthday Girl was so well written I would often forget about the age gap until something happened with Cole or until it became an issue in Pike and Jordan’s relationship。 Seeing Pike from Jordan’s perspective， and watching Pike fall in love， it made him feel so young to me （if not sometimes too young）， which is how it’s supposed to be。 Nobody actually ages after seventeen years old， and it was refreshing to see an older main character portrayed in that light because in no way is thirty-eight actually old。And truly， it was beautiful seeing two people who are so lonely find solace in each other and， in the words of Pike's friend Dutch， “speak their own language” despite everything that should make them too different。 Almost from the moment they meet， as just a guy and just a girl， you want them to find a way to make it work。This was the only part of the book I questioned。 Everything else—the characters， the story line， the drama， the spice—was on point。 The people were just so real， and I really appreciated how the eventual breakup with Cole wasn’t just a plot point; it was a long time coming with how he was living his life， how his relationship was with Pike， and how he was treating Jordan。 Plus， Pike and Jordan just fit together， both of them being people who lost a shot at childhood， which made up for the giant age gap。 And their attempts to ignore what they were feeling and focus on life outside of each other， all of which resulted in explosions of drama and jealousy （yay！） that ended in hot sizzles later （yum）， were so believable。 As a bonus， we get to see Pike and Jordan build their life together in the epilogue and make a long-term unconventional relationship work。Most importantly， yes， there was a huge age gap that sometimes felt uncomfortable when you thought about it too hard。 BUT， it was so nice to have something that happens in everyday life portrayed in a way that people can understand it and even admire it for its beauty because there’s a lot to admire about it， starting with the fact that people in their late thirties， forties， and even fifties and beyond deserve love too。And seriously， the taboo relationship was so fun to read。 This is the book I would pick up to feel good。 It’s an amazing， witty， deliciously dramatic， spicy， just-this-side-of-scandalous， heart-melting read， and I’m already so addicted。 I see many re-reads in my future。 。。。more
Kelly • Kell of a Read
，
I really wanted to love this。 The premise sounded steamy and taboo and angsty and right up my alley。 Plus， this was actually my first Penelope Douglas book so I was extra excited to see what all the fuss was about。 Sadly， this one fell flat for me。 I liked Jordan。 I liked Pike。 I just didn’t really feel that invested in their relationship。 I wanted more angst。 Jordan’s boyfriend （Pike’s son） was such a dud and she lets him walk all over him for the entire first half of the book。 When she finally I really wanted to love this。 The premise sounded steamy and taboo and angsty and right up my alley。 Plus， this was actually my first Penelope Douglas book so I was extra excited to see what all the fuss was about。 Sadly， this one fell flat for me。 I liked Jordan。 I liked Pike。 I just didn’t really feel that invested in their relationship。 I wanted more angst。 Jordan’s boyfriend （Pike’s son） was such a dud and she lets him walk all over him for the entire first half of the book。 When she finally decides to stand up for herself I was pretty disappointed。 I rarely have the patience for a slow burn and the build up of Pike and Jordan’s relationship was incredibly slow。 Sure， there were a few flirty moments and a couple stolen glances but it was ultimately too boring for my taste。 The plot was also nowhere near as taboo or edgy as I expected outside of the age gap。 And on that note， why are we acting like 38 is ancient？ Pike is constantly rambling on about getting too old to have more kids and how his life is almost halfway over。 Ugh！ Pipe down， buddy！ Tons of people have kids in their 30s and 40s and there’s absolutely nothing wrong with that。 I can’t stand when romance novels make me feel like I’m destined to be an old spinster because I’m 30 years old and haven’t found a husband yet or popped out a few kids by now。 Lastly， liking the 80s isn’t a personality trait。 I get wanting to throw in a few little anecdotes here and there but it got real old， real fast。 。。。more
Kathryn
，
Going to have to pass on this one。 What started off strong in my opinion ended up cliché and irritating。 The age difference was never an issue for me。 It's why I read the book in the first place; I was anticipating angst and tension and "oh we shouldn't but I want to" sex and all that goodness。 Instead I got a lack luster， zero chemistry romance with two main characters who just needed to。。。 stop。 Jordan is made out to be this super mature-for-her-age， clever character when in reality she's simp Going to have to pass on this one。 What started off strong in my opinion ended up cliché and irritating。 The age difference was never an issue for me。 It's why I read the book in the first place; I was anticipating angst and tension and "oh we shouldn't but I want to" sex and all that goodness。 Instead I got a lack luster， zero chemistry romance with two main characters who just needed to。。。 stop。 Jordan is made out to be this super mature-for-her-age， clever character when in reality she's simply 19。 I can't fault her for being immature and irritating because again。。。 she's literally a teenager。 But I can't stand the double standard throughout the whole book。 She's a pushover maid for her two-dimensional asshole boyfriend for a good 3/4 of the book and I'm supposed to be rooting for her？ Aside from a weird obsession with the 80s （which is no doubt meant to be symbolic of how she's destined to be with Pike） there's very little character， and character development， for her。 We read constantly about how she has this amazing， perky， 19 year old figure with great boobs and legs but Douglas straight up forgot to write her a personality beyond dealing with everyone else's shit and being unable to cope with conflict。 Seriously the big conflict in the book is because she's upset Pike won't tell his son and the mother of his child that he's in love with his son's ex-girlfriend。。。 so she runs away to think。 It's the stupidest thing and reading the finale where Pike of course tracks her down and in his POV is lamenting over how he wishes to have done thing differently when really。。。。 the conflict was literally her fault？ Had she just agreed to sleep on the couch instead of share a bed with the guy who literally cheated on her and accept the fact that the man she has feelings for has a literal family and priorities that aren't here。。。 this whole mess could've been avoided。 I hate conflict that arises from miscommunication like that。 It's weak and doesn't convince me that the MCs should be together。 And Pike himself is just this weird hybrid father figure cross domineering asshole in a non-sexy way。 I genuinely cannot find the sex scenes （which are terribly written anyway） hot when a paragraph before he refers to Jordan as 'girl' and himself the pseudo-father figure in her life。 I get this isn't pure erotica but like。。。 c'mon。 The desk scene was just awkward to read and I've read my fair share of weird sex in books。 Just hearing Pike's inner-monologue about how he wants to protect her and shelter her from the world then go off at her over her life decisions doesn't make for compelling romance in my eyes。 By the end of the book， their chemistry just completely flat lined for me。 When are romance writers going to realize that we can stop hating women now？ Every woman in this book， aside from two， were shamed beyond reason for wanting Pike and finding him attractive。 The girls Jordan's age are shallow and too into their looks compared to has-her-head-on Jordan。 Yawn。 I wanna hear more about Whatever's Louis Vuitton bag that Jordan couldn't shut up about more than I want to her Jordan herself complain about Cole。 Seriously， I found it boring and repetitive how much other women were shamed for simply existing in their book。 I'm sick of the trope that MC-female is the paragon of women， the beacon which the rest of us mere mortals should follow when we're confronted with the realization that we want material things and to look good。 This book had far too much casual sexism for me。 Not even in a world-building way， either。 Just I don't think Douglas even realized what she's written。Moreover， Cole as a character was just stupid to me。 Like， he's supposedly her best friend but also is just a complete asshole who hangs out with the guy who literally physically abused Jordan？ And no one's done anything about it？ I am genuinely angry writing this part of the review because I found this so horribly， and distastefully written。 Jordan just puts up with so much shit because she's strong and doesn't need a man to protect her？ When she's （apparently） fairly regularly verbally and possibly physically harassed？ I can't。 That all being said up until that 3/4 mark， I was really enjoying watching this play out。 But once the MCs had their horribly written sex， I got bored and just wanted to power through their stupid， meaningless conflict and finish this。 It all could have been fleshed out so much more but also cut down （this is a LONG read for a romance）。 Overall just。。。 meh。 I don't really get the hype around this one。 Not great， not horrible but certainly not a sweeping romance that's making me swoon。 。。。more
Nahla
，
a fanfiction i paid for。。。 i don't consider that a good thing a fanfiction i paid for。。。 i don't consider that a good thing 。。。more
aubrey
，
i’m ashamed to say that i liked this
Radhika
，
bitches this was so hot but I also cried quite a lot。
Tommy Browning
，
Really liked this book。 The sexual tension was so good。
Shreya
，
This book was straight-up amazing！ I would highly recommend this to any romance book lover。。。 I am a sucker for age gap romance books and I find them very attractive。 The way each of the characters in this book develops from the first chapter all the way to the 29th chapter is truly beautiful。 I am quite thankful that there was no such thing as cheating in the book。。。when you read a book on your "boyfriends father" you would expect there to be some form of cheating and I loved how this book stay This book was straight-up amazing！ I would highly recommend this to any romance book lover。。。 I am a sucker for age gap romance books and I find them very attractive。 The way each of the characters in this book develops from the first chapter all the way to the 29th chapter is truly beautiful。 I am quite thankful that there was no such thing as cheating in the book。。。when you read a book on your "boyfriends father" you would expect there to be some form of cheating and I loved how this book stayed kind of pure and did not go through that cliche route。 Overall I totally recommend this book， it is very much worth a read。。。 。。。more
dawn
，
gag
Amanda
，
Am I *pause to tuck hair behind ear* into older men now？ It’s a great book but I have to leave my 5 stars for those Penelope Douglas books that closest to my heart。But Yh， it’s really such a good book to the point that relationships with these age gaps weird me out but this was a new perspective， new， personality filled characters and just ughhhh beautiful。
jasmine :）
，
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 This is the only book where I was okay with the women doing the cooking and the cleaning。 I usually don’t like the misogynistic rolls but this book was actually OK with that subject。 And in the end I was OK with the happy family with kids and stuff， it was really cute。
Thea
，
It’s 4 am and I just finished this book in one sitting and it was soooooo good！ I thought I wouldn’t like Birthday Girl but nope - Penelope Douglas can do no wrong。 And it helps that I kept imagining Tyler Hoechlin as Pike :’）
Hailey
，
okay i loved it i love dilfs
kristina olivera
，
This book was so good， I absolutely love forbidden romances。 And the angst。。oh man it was a ride。 The ending had my heart doing a little flip。 I have officially found another favorite of mine I will be shelving in my favorites list！！
Jayarna ✨
，
I really wanted to love this but I just couldn't get past some aspects。 I just don't think this is done that well。 I wish she was just a little bit older。 I wish Pike actually fucking tried with his child， instead of just fucking his girlfriend and they whinging that he wishes he could be around Cole more。 There is a really issue with power dynamics here and I just can't。 Penelope Douglas definitely does a good job of building relationships and this was still okay， but I was quite uncomfortable I really wanted to love this but I just couldn't get past some aspects。 I just don't think this is done that well。 I wish she was just a little bit older。 I wish Pike actually fucking tried with his child， instead of just fucking his girlfriend and they whinging that he wishes he could be around Cole more。 There is a really issue with power dynamics here and I just can't。 Penelope Douglas definitely does a good job of building relationships and this was still okay， but I was quite uncomfortable for the end of this。For this to work for me， I would've liked to see Jordan less sexualised。 I can't believe that their isn't some gross sexual motivation for Pike because while he says he wants to do stuff other than sex 'once he can stop fucking her' he never actually does this。 Once they actually admit they want to be together， we do not get any scenes of them doing anything but fighting and fucking。 And Jordan begins this book basically looking after a lazy ass guy， and has to be the adult in the relationship。 Because of this， she find Pike super sexy because he takes his laundry out of the dryer on his own。 Honey， you don't need a forty year old for this。 She makes his lunch and cares for him， doing housewife shit at 19 and just wants a stable fucking normal life， which i understand with her backstory， but I find this whole thing of getting married at 20 to this prepared life so she can have some semblance of security is like a weird power imbalance and she was so immature the entire time i just couldn't get on bored with this whole idea。 。。。more
Myra
，
All I need from a romance book， so good！！！
Donna Mae
，
Super love this book！I’m so happy I read this book。 Loved every part of it。 So much chemistry between Jordan and Pike。 😘😘 definitely getting myself a paperback copy of this。 😊
male
，
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 Es el segundo libro que leo de Penelope Douglas， y por ahora， el único que no me gustó demasiado。 Supongo que no me gustó por el hecho de que el protagonista masculino le dobla la edad a la protagonista femenina y porque no es el tipo de libro que suelo leer usualmente。
Leah
，
go read it now！ pike is a DILF
Antonia Astete
，
Necesitaba algo ligero para leer jajajaja， definitivamente lo que andaba buscando。La historia me gusto aun que a veces me irritaba que Pike fuera tan posesivo y machista upsSiento que es un libro ligero y hot como para salir de un bloqueo pero no esperen una excelente historia con personajes amados jajaj le doy un 2，8 ya que si me gusto como todo fluyó
Jamie
，
3。5 stars
Yogita Sharma
，
Loved it！！
Tiffany C
，
A taboo romance novel that features the trope: my boyfriend’s father。 A pretty quick read and lots of sexual tension and good smut （🌶🌶🌶🌶/5） - but with some FTB at the end as the story raps up， which was fine by me because I didn’t think any more intimate scenes were required。 There were some random things I’m being picky about but overall a great read！
Christine （myfictionaldays）
，
2 romance novels in a row？ Who’s she？ Definitely not me 😂 But damn I’m obsessed with Penelope Douglas’ stories- so much that I’ve already picked up 3 more books by her。
Elisabeth Dudziak
，
Yeah， so I didn’t sleep for like 43 hours in a row because of this book。 I could have finished it faster， but I swear I both devoured this book while simultaneously rereading practically every sentence just to stay in this story for as long as possible。 All I can say is… this is a PHENOMENAL romance。 It was binge-able， adorable， and so sweet to read。 I heard about this book on a youtube recs video and it was love at first sight。 I had to have it then and there because of the premise alone。 I bou Yeah， so I didn’t sleep for like 43 hours in a row because of this book。 I could have finished it faster， but I swear I both devoured this book while simultaneously rereading practically every sentence just to stay in this story for as long as possible。 All I can say is… this is a PHENOMENAL romance。 It was binge-able， adorable， and so sweet to read。 I heard about this book on a youtube recs video and it was love at first sight。 I had to have it then and there because of the premise alone。 I bought the ebook immediately and started reading。 Basically， I was grinning like a lunatic during every page due to the cuteness factor of this romance。 Immediately， I want to address the *ahem* taboo *ahem* aspect of this romance （a large age gap， not to mention Pike is Jordan’s boyfriend’s dad lol…）， and without going into details， I think it was handled really well。 Nothing about the romance felt forced… it really was like Pike and Jordan were just meant to be together， despite their more than odd circumstances which had them fighting their feelings throughout the book。 No cringe to be found here :） just one of the most heart warming romances you may ever read。 （but here’s a warning that this book doesn’t really shy away from explicit content in the latter half of the book so take that for what you will）。 I loved both of our main characters and especially loved all of Pike’s narration portions of the book。 His inner monologue was SO funny to me for some reason。 His personality was great to see the world through。 It wasn’t like he was cracking a ton of jokes all the time， but I could just tell how earnest he was in everything despite the ridiculous circumstances he was put in。 I don’t know。 His chapters always made me laugh but its a bit hard to explain （especially with my lack of sleep lol）。 The thing I found the most impressive about this book was that for once， I didn’t insert myself into the story through the main girl’s pov。 I usually do that with female leads in books like these， and if I can’t then its harder for me to like the book。 This one， however， just got me to love Jordan immediately。 The character she portrayed was really solid。 I loved Pike and her relationship that I found myself naturally choosing to just be a bystander throughout this book rather than “becoming” Jordan in a sense which just shows some real development of characters。 Jordan and Pike were just… completely perfect for each other all on their own。 There was a fair amount of character growth also， and they both grew to fit each other only more by the end of the book。 an easy 5 stars to this gem of a romance ❤️ 。。。more
Reference
google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=Birthday Girl
hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=Birthday Girl&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft
The British Library https://bll01.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/search?query=any,contains,Birthday Girl&tab=LibraryCatalog&search_scope=Not_BL_Suppress&vid=44BL_INST:BLL01&lang=en&offset=0