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YA
In this verse novel, tough girl Jess nicks some cosmetics with friends who let her take the fall. Nicu, an earnest Romanian-immigrant boy, impulsively steals a candy bar to satisfy his hunger. Their crimes lead to community service detail, where (English-language-learner) Nicu is drawn to Jess: "She seem lonely. / She seem lost..." This moving star-crossed love affair set in modern-day London is heartbreakingly timely.