The Clique Summer Collection: Kristen

Harrison, Lisi. The Clique Summer Collection: Kristen. Little, Brown and Company: 2008. ISBN: 9780316027526.

Summary:
Kristen has just finished eighth grade and is facing the worst possible situation ever, a summer stuck at home babysitting/tutoring. All of Kristen's BFFs from the Pretty Committee are spending their summers traveling to exotic places or having delicious romances. But Kristen is stuck, stuck, stuck. Luckily, Ripple, Kristen's charge has an older brother, Dune, who is a skateboarder and gorgeous. Now things are looking up! Kristen wants so badly to impress Dune that she acts like someone she is not and loses sight of how important it is to be yourself.

Evaluation:
This book is major fluff! Every time an article of clothing is mentioned, the brand is given. The main character, Kristen, talks in annoying teenage slang, ehmagawd! But for all the shallowness, an important message is woven into the plot. Kristen changes who she is depending on who she is hanging around. She thinks this is the way to get friends and her 'crush'. Ultimately Kristen learns that she needs to be herself, whoever that may be. Adults will roll their eyes at this book, but teenage girls will relate and let's fact it, that is who the book was written for. Think Danielle Steele for teens.

Reader's Annotation:
It is important to always be true to yourself.

Bibliotherapeutic Uses:
Teens are obsessed with fitting in and not bringing undue attention to themselves. In doing so, many teens act differently around different people. Kristen shows us that your friends may be happy with this situation, but it is more important to be true to yourself.

Genre: Romance

Why I Included This Book:
Some parents won't let their girls read these books, I was curious what they were like.