Heather Ennis

May 11, 2011

112B

Teens spend much of their time discovering who they are as people, and who they will be when they grow up. Being a teen means spending much of your time in between, navigating the roads of growing up. By presenting these issues in a way that is humorous, authors have an easier time conveying their message to teens. The most important message that can be easily conveyed through writing is that whatever someone is feeling, that they are not alone. If a teen knows that they are not alone, but they are told in a way that is relatable, not as if they are being spoken down to, they are more likely to listen.

Humor is an equalizer, by putting a funny spin on serious topics; teens are more likely to want to read about them. Many teens state that they don�t like to read because it is boring and that is most likely because they are simply not being given the correct materials to read.

I chose the flowing books not only because I enjoy reading things that make me laugh, but also because I think that as a girl growing up you typically have many different obstacles to conquer before you are done with the process of growing up. All of the main characters in the books that I chose are female, and they all have vastly different ways of dealing with their problems, whether they are large and daunting like the problems of ruling a country one day, or are simpler and involve a precocious younger sibling who was unattended in someone�s bedroom for an extended period of time.

Adler, Emily, and Alex Echevarria. Sweet 15. Tarrytown, NY: Marshall Cavendish, 2010. Print.

Destiny is torn between her tomboyish attitude and the quinceanera that her mother is pressuring her to have. While Destiny�s mother is dead-set on a traditional celebration, and her feminist sister, America, is against the whole thing. Will Destiny be able to find a male escort and stop escaping her problems by watching too much television and skateboarding around town? This book is a fun read that introduces different bits of Hispanic vocabulary, explaining things like what a quinceanera is exactly in an approachable way. It explains how growing up does not mean choosing just one way to be yourself, but rather that you can blend your cultural heritage with your tomboyish qualities. Overall I would recommend it because of the way that it blends not only the Puerto Rican culture with American, but the tomboy lifestyle with a more stereotypical girly lifestyle, while still keeping the tone of the novel light and comedic.

Brande, Robin. Evolution, Me & Other Freaks of Nature. New York City: Alfred A. Knopf, 2009. Print.

Mena is completely ostracized by her peers, after getting her church, her family and her friends parents sued for millions of dollars. Even though Mena�s biology lab partner is totally strange, Mena is happy to meet someone that is not from her church and doesn�t totally hater her. Hopefully Mena can find a way to make it through high school in one piece. I would recommend this book to anyone that has ever felt lonely, or like they made a mistake that could not be fixed. I also liked how this book laces the fact that Mena goes to church (or at least used to go to church, her pastor made it clear she is no longer welcome) because I have not noticed this in other young adult literature that I have read. Mena is discovering that no matter what you do, not everyone will hate you which is an important part of growing up. Overall this book laces comedy with the pain of making a mistake that you don�t think can ever be fixed, and what I liked most about it is how Mena finds a friend in the most unlikely of places, Biology lab.

Cabot, Meg. Princess in Pink. New York City: Harper Teen, 2004. Print.

Amelia has a lot of problems, her mom is pregnant and planning on marrying her math teacher, which she�s failing by the way, her boyfriend hasn�t asked her to the prom yet, and she is totally not ready to become the next heir to the Genovian throne. In this hilarious, epistolary style novel has all of the problems of a normal girl growing up in New York City, except that Mia is also a princess. It�s not bad enough that she has to deal with convincing her boyfriend that he wants to go to the prom, Mia also has to suffer through princess lessons with her grandmother as well. I chose this installment of the Princess Diaries series not only because it is my favorite, but because it deals with the end all, be all of high school, the prom. Popular culture has built up prom to be the biggest event of our young lives, and Princess in Pink illustrates this very well, while still remaining hysterical. I would highly recommend this book to any girl who has to deal with a reluctant boyfriend. This book shows how Mia is discovering who she is in a relationship, which is an important part of growing up and discovering who you are, and who you will be as an adult.

Calonita, Jen. Sleepaway Girls. New York City: Poppy, 2009. Print.

When Sam�s best friend has a new boyfriend, Sam decides to skip being the third wheel all summer long and become a camp counselor instead. At Camp Whispering Pines Sam meets two very different guys, Hunter who is classically gorgeous, and Cole who is funny. Sam left home for the summer to avoid the romance, and here she is stuck between two guys on her break. I would reccamend this book for anyone who has ever felt like the third wheel, or like their best friend was moving on without them. In my opinion it is easier for Sam to understand the way that her best friend feels once she has her first experience with love as well. This book shows how Sam is beginning to discover who she is when she is removed from her usual setting and placed into one that is completely alien to her. Overall Sleepaway Girls uses humor to break up the large amounts of tension commonly found in situations where one girl has to choose between two boys.

Mechling, Lauren, and Laura Moser. The Rise and Fall of a 10th-Grade Social Climber. New York City: Houghton Mifflin Company, 2005. Print.

Mimi is moving back to New York City to live with her dad. In the city, she will be attending the Baldwin School, a place that is about as different from the school she was attending in Texas as Mars would be. This book uses easily accessible language, lightly peppered with abbreviations, but not so many that it becomes obnoxious to read. I would recommend this book because it is about the changing lifestyle that many teens are forced to go through as they grow up either as parents divorce and remarry or as they move across country. This book illustrates Mimi�s struggle to discover who she is, and how she fits into the New York lifestyle, particularly the Baldwin School which is a hysterical rendering of how prep schools really are.

Medina, Nico. Fat Hoochie Prom Queen. New York City: Simon Pulse, 2008. Print.

Fat Hoochie Prom Queen is the story of Margarite �Madge� Diaz, the former starlet who is now permenatly in the shadow of her ex-best friend. In an effort to piss of her ex-best friend, as well as to prove a point, Madge decides to run for prom queen, but only if her dress is made of faux-fur and vynil. This book shows Madge�s desire to prove that even though she is not a typical prom queen, that she could still be crowned one. Madge is growing up as a curvy girl, and she is happy with who she is. The only reason that I would be hesitant to recommend it is that it has many instances of casual substance abuse, but other than that it is a hilariously endearing story of what it is like to exist on the fringes of what is considered normal in high school.

Noel, Alyson. art geeks and prom queens. New York: St. Martin's Griffin, 2005. Print.

Rio, like the song not the country, is new at her high school, as well as the state of California. Her parents just moved her out here, and she hates it, from the season-less weather to the fact that her mom is redecorating the new house in California-lite, while wearing her new Juicy sweat suit. Rio just wants to go back to New York City and the friends she knows and loves. Besides she�s pretty sure that the cheer squad is out to get her. Rio is dealing with growing up and being forced to move. While this might feel like the worst thing in the world, it gives Rio a chance to experience many new things and broaden her experiences. I would recommend this book because it tells the complexity of meeting new friends in a humorous way that helps to alleviate just hard of a task that really is.

Noel, Alyson. Cruel Summer. New York: St. Martin's Griffin, 2008. Print.

Colby is being sent to Greece for the summer and considers it to be the worst possible thing in the world. If Colby isn�t here to maintain her status over the summer, Amanda, who is the most popular girl in school, and Levi, who Colby hooked up with just before she left for Greece, will forget all about her. Since neither of Colby�s parents will listen to her cries to not be sent away, Colby meets a cute local boy and realizes that not everything about Greece is that bad. Through journal entries and blog posts, Colby tells the humorous story of the worst summer ever. Through her experiences in Greece, Colby is able to discover that there is more to life than being popular.

Reinhardt, Dana. A Brief Chapter in My Impossible Life. New York City: Wendy Lamb Books, 2007. Print.

Simone is adopted, which was never a secret in her family, seeing as she does not look like any of her family members. Simone never really cared that she was adopted, but she never wanted to discuss her birth mom. All of that is forced to change when Simone�s birth mom shows up and wants to get to know her before she dies of a terminal illness. While A Brief Chapter in My Impossible Life is about emotional situations such as being adopted, or having someone you have grown close to be diagnosed or die of an illness, the story is still presented in a quick witted fashion. This humorous presentation is why I would recommend it to a young adult who is experiencing death or illness for the first time.

Rennison, Louise. Angus, Thongs and Full-Frontal Snogging. First American Edition. New York City, New York: Harper Collins Publishers, 1999. Print.

Georgia has six things that are very wrong with her life, some of which are that its back to school in two weeks and that she went to a party as a stuffed olive. Georgia is a hilarious protagonist in Angus, Thongs and Full-Frontal Snogging, dealing with issues of the boy she loves going out with another girl, the fact that her little sister may have peed in her room, and that her best friend is most unreliable. I would highly recommend this book, since it is a laugh a minute read that readers of any age can relate to. Even if the reader does not have a cat that is a savage and will attack unwary passersby from his perch on the top of the drapes, any reader can take away understanding from Georgia and the hilarious ways that she deals with her problems or growing up and being responsible.