Exactly twenty years ago Distel’s father passed away. As a 13-year-old girl she experienced death as an outsider, now, as a 33-year-old woman, feelings of grief are catching up with her. The city is turning against her, her upstairs neighbors are up to no good and her apartment furniture is starting to speak to her. 

According to Distel there’s only one solution for the chaos: she must become a teenager again. With the aid of a set of childhood photos and a shady website, Distel calls to life her former self. On the internet, however, she quickly loses control of her images. 

The Teenager is a novel about innocence and transgression, about the aftermath of hidden pain and about the significance of the image of a girl in Western culture.