A thought-provoking look at the good-girl/bad-girl dichotomy.
A Nebraska teen blames herself for unwanted attention that might be sexual assault.
White Rosie, with her pale, Angelina Jolie–like beauty, is used to being leered at by boys and men—and she likes it. Her skewed, immature worldview keeps her from seeing that her best friend, Maddie, back from a summer in Spain, no longer needs her social guidance. Even before junior year, Rosie has hooked up with one guy after another, earning her a reputation for “the famous Rosie Fuller Stopwatch.” At a party with her friends (mostly also white), Rosie floats from the “best part of the night, the just-beginning-to-get-drunk part,” to being too drunk to fully comprehend what’s happening when Cory, a football player who “looks like someone’s Hollywood version of a corn-fed Midwestern boy,” begins to force himself on her, stopping only when Maddie appears. Rosie’s assumption that the near rape was her own fault stems from the self-centeredness she’s developed by being constantly in the spotlight. Through Rosie’s present-tense narration, Maciel examines societal pressures on girls to equate self-worth and looks. The book’s message is delivered in an uneven way, however, depicting the very real perils that young women face in the context of a somewhat dated, superficial version of high school life. What is realistic, though, is the fact that such experiences are rarely wrapped up neatly.
A thought-provoking look at the good-girl/bad-girl dichotomy. (Fiction. 13-17)Pub Date: April 25, 2017
ISBN: 978-0-06-230533-6
Page Count: 320
Publisher: Balzer + Bray/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: Jan. 31, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 2017
BOOK REVIEW
The Phantom of the Opera served as inspiration, but this wouldn’t last on Broadway.
Stephanie and her family move into an old mansion rumored to have been put under a curse after a turn-of-the-20th-century rich boy meddled with an Egyptian mummy.
After her young sister complains about strange events, high school student Stephanie befriends Lucas, a geeky, good-looking boy, and meets the other members of SPOoKy, the Scientific Paranormal Organization of Kentucky: Charlotte, Wes, and Patrick. Stephanie learns the history of her new home from Lucas, who attracts her romantic attention, but the usually levelheaded girl is soon drawn to Erik, the handsome phantom who first comes to her in dreams. The story is told in chapters narrated by Stephanie, Lucas, and Zedok, whose identity is initially a source of confusion to Stephanie. Zedok appears wearing different masks, “personified slivers” of his soul, representing states of mind such as Wrath, Madness, and Valor. Meanwhile, until gifted singer Stephanie came along and he could write songs for her, Erik’s dreams were thwarted; he wanted to be a composer but his family expected him to become a doctor. In the gothic horror tradition, Erik’s full background and connection with Zedok are slowly revealed. Romantic dream sequences are lush and swoon-y, but the long, drawn-out battle to end the curse, aided by a celebrity clairvoyant, is tedious, and the constant introduction of Erik’s different personae is confusing. Most characters default to White; Patrick is Black.
The Phantom of the Opera served as inspiration, but this wouldn’t last on Broadway. (Horror. 13-16)Pub Date: Aug. 17, 2021
ISBN: 978-0-593-11604-3
Page Count: 528
Publisher: Viking
Review Posted Online: May 26, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2021
Several yards short of a touchdown.
A transgender boy starting over at a new school falls hard for a popular cheerleader with a reputation to protect in this debut.
On the first day of senior year, transgender boy Pony locks eyes with cisgender cheerleader Georgia. They both have pasts they want to leave behind. No one at Hillcrest High knows that Pony is transgender, and he intends to keep it that way. Georgia’s last boyfriend shook her trust in boys, and now she’s determined to forget him. As mutual attraction draws them together, Pony and Georgia must decide what they are willing to risk for a relationship. Pony’s best friend, Max, who is also transgender, disapproves of Pony’s choice to live stealth; this disagreement leads to serious conflict in their relationship. Meanwhile, Georgia and Pony behave as if Pony’s trans identity was a secret he was lying to her about rather than private information for him to share of his own volition. The characters only arrive at a hopeful resolution after Pony pays high physical and emotional prices. McSmith places repeated emphasis on the born-in-the-wrong-body narrative when the characters discuss trans identities. Whiteness is situated as the norm, and all main characters are white.
Several yards short of a touchdown. (Fiction. 14-17)Pub Date: May 26, 2020
ISBN: 978-0-06-294317-0
Page Count: 368
Publisher: HarperTeen
Review Posted Online: Feb. 8, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2020
BOOK REVIEW
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