Is Growing Up by Russell Baker, appropriate for a 12-year old? The back cover references the author's sexual discovery as part of the storyline.I...

"Growing up" is a novel published in 1982 that won the
Pulitzer Prize for literature the following year, so it is a widely acclaimed book.  It
deals mostly with growing up in the 1930s in a dysfunctional family, facing the hard
times that were the Great Depression.  My impression when I read it (in the 10th grade
in 1984) was that sexual awakening was not the central theme of the book.  That was a
long time ago too, so all I can say with certainty is that I remember other
themes.

That being said, you have concerns about what your
child is reading in school, and what you or I find "appropriate" may be vastly
different.  It is a fairly subjective term, after all.  So I encourage you to find out
the process by which books are approved in your school district, and to call your
Superintendent, or Curriculum Director, or School Board member to see if these concerns
may have already been addressed, or if the book has been properly screened by
them.

In a public school setting it is sometimes difficult
to shield our kids from ideas we may find inappropriate or distasteful.  In the
classroom, you may be able to request an alternative assignment if, in the end, you find
the book crosses your line of appropriateness.  If there is an issue of trust, you may
be able to place your daughter in another teacher's
class.

I say all of these things as a public school
teacher, who respects parents and what they have to say.  I also find that most teachers
do the same.  Good luck, both with your daughter and with her
education.