No Such Thing as the Real World

April 1, 2009
Gr 9 Up-Six contemporary YA authors showcase their creative talents and good writing. M. T. Anderson's "The Projection" is a mind-blowing drama set in improvisational theater. The emotionally charged situation shifts to a complex illusion of what is real and what is an act. A staged relationship is played out and a mind game is replayed, unwound, and rewound in the present, past, and future. An Na's "Complication" is a disturbing story of a rape victim and single mother's scheme to target and extort money from her attacker's relative. Trying to redeem his brother's crime by showing tenderness and concern, the good brother strives toward resolution, but Fay has her own ideas and needs to be free. Beth Kephart's "The Longest Distance" addresses the deceased's best friend and teen suicide. The narrator is sad, confused, and desperate to answer the age-old question, "Why?" Other contributors include K. L. Going, Chris Lynch, and Jacqueline Woodson. This unique collection will challenge students' intellect and have them questioning their own decision-making skills. A fine balance is straddled between sophisticated prose and authentic teen voices, uninhibited and peppered with profanity."Alison Follos, North Country School, Lake Placid, NY"

Copyright 2009 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

July 1, 2009
Grades 9-12 Like the anthology Up All Night (2008), this short story collection features themed contributions from prominent young adult authors. Here, a life-changing event catapults young people into the real world for the first time. In some stories, the event is dramatic and clearly defined, as in Chris Lynchs sly, heartbreaking Arrangements, about a 19-year-old who takes over his familys pawnshop after his fathers funeral. In others, the event is more subtle and private; K. L. Goings Survival pivots around a single, shattering kiss. Times reachboth forward and backwardis a recurring element. In M. T. Andersons wild, experimental The Projection: A Two-Part Invention, an improv scene that spins into the future reveals a teens feelings in the present. And in Nas devastating Complication, a young woman finds a new connection to the man who raped her. An associated publisher-sponsored writing contest should attract even more attention to this bracing, sophisticated collection about what it means to grow up and grow into a world of flaws, heartbreak, and flashes of promise.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2009, American Library Association.)

July 1, 2009
Incisive short stories by An Na, M. T. Anderson, K. L. Going, Beth Kephart, Chris Lynch, and Jacqueline Woodson explore transitional moments in the lives of young people on the cusp of adulthood. Without minimizing the pain of death, disillusionment, or romantic disappointment, each author offers a vision of an emerging individual who forges ahead with an even stronger sense of self and purpose.

(Copyright 2009 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)