NEW REVIEW OF HOW TO BE BAD

TITLE: How to be Bad, a Novel
AUTHORS: E. Lockhart
Sarah Mlynowski
Lauren Myracle
DATE: May 2008
GENRE: Young Adult (teen)
RATING: 4 Stars
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I have been on a run of good luck in the last few weeks - reading books that have been interesting and fun at the same time.

I am an adult who enjoys reading a good Young Adult (teen) book. Unfortunately, when I was that age, the selections were very limited - now, teens have a much broader choice.

How to Be Bad was a pleasant surprise for me. I don't normally enjoy reading a book where there are 3 separate voices taking turns telling their story - which is the case here.

How to Be Bad introduces us to 3 very different girls and through their voices (each was written by a different author and we do not get to find out who is who until the very end of the book), you will get a slightly different perspective on a road trip that they have decided to embark on together.

Indeed, Vicks, Jesse and Mel work together and are all the same age, but only Vicks and Jesse are really close friends. On the spur of the moment, for various personal reasons, all three of the girls end up on a three day road trip in a beat up station wagon. Jesse needs to get away from her mother and her illness, Vicks needs to find out what is going on with her suddenly "hard to reach" boyfriend and Mel just seems to have a desperate need to make friends.

As we follow our girls on the road, experiencing their ups and downs, crying for them and with them and cheering them on, we get a coming of age story that is both heartwarming and funny.

The open road becomes a bit of a metaphor for what the girls are living and while this ride is only a three day weekend, in the end, it is enough to give them all important insights into what is important and what can be left by the side of the road.

Well written, intriguing (which author is actually writing which part?)with genuine emotion, this book was a treat.