Love-shy

Gr 9 Up—The most refreshing aspect of this novel is the teen protagonist, Penny, who has an overabundance of confidence, intelligence, and capabilities and seems completely unflappable. Frequently, this is also the most annoying part of the story. As a scholastic wiz-kid and great athlete, Penny stars on the school's debate team, swim team, and is an active participant in a number of other extracurricular activities. Ever focused and driven, Penny's personal best shows in her work for the school newspaper, and she'll stop at nothing for a front-page story. When she stumbles across a "Love-shy" blog post—left open and quickly abandoned on the school library's computer—Penny jumps into investigative journalism mode. Penny uncovers that "Love-shy" is Nick, a handsome fellow student. Under Nick's shy exterior an emotional crisis is festering. There is nothing subtle about Penny. She sniffs with disdain over her classmates' interest in friendship and popularity, and proudly flaunts her single-minded focus. Her ambition drives her to pry into Nick's blog post and dig through his personal life. Nick is mortified that Penny is onto him and infuriated that she won't respect his privacy. This is a view of two teens, at opposite ends of the social, emotional, and academic spectrum. Penny uncovers something about Nick and backs herself into an awkward corner as her obsession eclipses everything else. The conversations among the teen characters often seem silly and superficial. An additional purchase.—Alison Follos, formerly at North Country School, Lake Placid, NY