Kate, who owns underpants printed with “I heart Science,” desperately wants to become a doctor, and she’s the student...
A geeky girl gets the guy in this comic romp through a high school infested with zombies.
Kate, who owns underpants printed with “I heart Science,” desperately wants to become a doctor, and she’s the student medical assistant for her school’s perpetually losing football team. She develops dark suspicions when she sees unmarked drug vials in the coach’s office, especially when Coach injects the players with his mystery medication. In short order, Mike, one of the players, apparently dies but lurches to life again and bites a chunk out of Kate’s lip. Harris draws on a wealth of zombie clichés as Kate watches the infection spread rapidly. Worse, the now-zombie coach attacks her even after his foot falls off, and her annoying but loyal little brother shows unmistakable zombie symptoms. But why hasn’t Kate succumbed? Can she find a cure? Meanwhile, Aaron, her secret heartthrob, confesses his love because of her brains (although Mike would like to eat Kate’s brains). But can the mad science teacher derail Kate’s medical-school dreams? And can Kate get the local health department to listen? Throughout, the author keeps the focus on laughs as Kate speeds through car crashes, tries to keep her dog from eating the coach’s foot and chases zombies as she wields syringes like six-shooters.Pub Date: July 12, 2011
ISBN: 978-0-385-73968-9
Page Count: 208
Publisher: Delacorte
Review Posted Online: June 6, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2011
There’s not much plot here, but readers will relish the opportunity to climb inside Autumn’s head.
The finely drawn characters capture readers’ attention in this debut.
Autumn and Phineas, nicknamed Finny, were born a week apart; their mothers are still best friends. Growing up, Autumn and Finny were like peas in a pod despite their differences: Autumn is “quirky and odd,” while Finny is “sweet and shy and everyone like[s] him.” But in eighth grade, Autumn and Finny stop being friends due to an unexpected kiss. They drift apart and find new friends, but their friendship keeps asserting itself at parties, shared holiday gatherings and random encounters. In the summer after graduation, Autumn and Finny reconnect and are finally ready to be more than friends. But on August 8, everything changes, and Autumn has to rely on all her strength to move on. Autumn’s coming-of-age is sensitively chronicled, with a wide range of experiences and events shaping her character. Even secondary characters are well-rounded, with their own histories and motivations.
There’s not much plot here, but readers will relish the opportunity to climb inside Autumn’s head. (Fiction. 14 & up)Pub Date: April 1, 2013
ISBN: 978-1-4022-7782-5
Page Count: 336
Publisher: Sourcebooks Fire
Review Posted Online: Feb. 12, 2013
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2013
BOOK REVIEW
SEEN & HEARD
Exactly what the title promises.
A grieving teen’s devotion to romance films might ruin her chances at actual romance.
Liz Buxbaum has always adored rom-coms, not least for helping her still feel close to her screenwriter mother, who died when she was little. Liz hopes that her senior year might turn into a real-life romantic fantasy, as an old crush has moved back to town, cuter and nicer than ever. Surely she can get Michael to ask her to prom. If only Wes, the annoying boy next door, would help her with her scheming! This charming, fluffy concoction manages to pack into one goofy plot every conceivable trope, from fake dating to the makeover to the big misunderstanding. Creative, quirky, daydreaming Liz is just shy of an annoying stereotype, saved by a dry wit and unresolved grief and anger. Wes makes for a delightful bad boy with a good heart, and supporting characters—including a sassy best friend, a perfect popular rival, even a (not really) evil stepmother—all get the opportunity to transcend their roles. The only villain here is Liz’s lovelorn imagination, provoking her into foolish lies that cause actual hurt feelings; but she is sufficiently self-aware to make amends just in time for the most important trope of all: a blissfully happy ending. All characters seem to be White by default.
Exactly what the title promises. (Romance. 12-18)Pub Date: May 4, 2021
ISBN: 978-1-5344-6762-0
Page Count: 368
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: Feb. 22, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2021
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