Jennifer Chan Is Not Alone

Jennifer Chan is Not Alone explores the importance of facing the truth in two significant ways: First, Mal learns that the truth is the opposite of rumor and can combat ignorance or ill-intent; she also discovers that truth is about self-awareness and acknowledging her motives and faults. Through the course of the novel, Mal faces these truths and strives for self-improvement.

The novel shows that rumors are harmful because they violate privacy and self-representation, whereas truth can combat rumors because it relies on evidence over assumption. The town and the school’s culture of gossip is toxic, as people are more interested in their reputations—in how they seem to the town and others—rather than in authentic character. People use rumors to slander others while validating their sense of worth. Mal comments that in Nowhereville, “the truth doesn’t always matter” (14). Her friend Tess engages in the most sordid types of rumor-spreading to heighten her own sense of righteousness: For instance, she gossips about Jennifer being a bank robber or a murderer. Tess operates under the assumption that the worse other people are, the better she herself appears in comparison. Initially, Mal enjoys the sordid gossip, and her eagerness to meet Jennifer is rooted in exploiting the rumors about Jennifer to increase Mal’s own popularity.