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Keplinger, Kody
6 Reviews
(3)
YA
Legally blind Agnes, stifled by her protective parents, and Bo, who has a bad reputation and a drug-addicted mother, together run away from their small Kentucky town one night. In alternating chapters, Agnes provides backstory for the friendship and Bo narrates in present tense. Supported by its vivid setting and matter-of-fact portrayal of a disability, this is an intense story about a passionate friendship.
Reviewer: Rachel L. Smith
(4)
YA
World-class liar Sonny starts flirting online with her crush, Ryder--but Ryder thinks he's talking to Sonny's best friend. Sonny never corrects him, even after she and Ryder begin seeing each other in person. While the charade drags on too long, Sonny's voice is sharp and sometimes touching. Fans of Keplinger's The DUFF will enjoy cameos from now-in-college Wesley and Bianca.
Reviewer: Rachel L. Smith
(4)
4-6
Nola shares everything with neighbors Brian, Canaan, and Keith Swift. But when their father leaves suddenly, the boys start excluding her. Without best friend Canaan, Nola tries to determine what makes a true friend, and she's surprised by what she learns. Nola's misguided search for Mr. Swift rings as unbelievable, but Keplinger offers powerful lessons about hope, friendship, and inner strength.
Reviewer: Rebecca Kirshenbaum
(4)
YA
Party girl Whitley can't wait to spend the summer with her dad. But things change when she meets Dad's new fiancée and her two kids, one of whom Whitley has slept with. She self-destructs, ignoring the people who want to help her, and soon hits rock bottom. The story is riddled with caricatures, but readers will find satisfaction in Whitley's rebounding.
Reviewer: Lana Barnes
(4)
YA
In this story very loosely based on the Aristophanes play Lysistrata, intense rivalry between Hamilton High's football and soccer teams is the catalyst for the players' girlfriends staging a sex strike until the teams make peace. Some honest conversations and confessions about relationships ensue, but lack of character development and some weak plotting hinder this otherwise provocative battle-of-the-sexes story.
Reviewer: Carolyn Shute
(4)
YA
Bianca is insulted when womanizing Wesley calls her a DUFF (designated ugly fat friend) but she nevertheless begins having sex with him. Though she tells herself Wesley's just a distraction from her parents' impending divorce, Bianca ends up falling for him. The characters lack subtlety (especially the parents), but Bianca's biting sarcasm sets the story a notch above the ordinary teen romance.
Reviewer: Rachel L. Smith
6 reviews
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