Fancy White Trash
Grade 8 Up—Fifteen-year-old Abby Savage has always thought of herself as the "normal" one in a household that more closely resembles a soap-opera cast than a real family. It's the summer before sophomore year, and, with her best friend Cody's help, Abby is determined to follow her One True Love Plan (formulated to avoid the mistakes of her sisters Shelby and Kait). Then Mom announces that she is pregnant by her new husband, Steve, a younger man who also happens to be the father of Kait's unborn child. Things become even more complicated when Cody's older brother, Jackson, returns home. Last spring, Abby thought she was falling in love with him, but she now distances herself because she's obsessed by the possibility that he could be the father of Kait's child (Kait dated Jackson before Steve). This somewhat farcical account of the Savage women is told in a witty, toned-down Meg Cabot style. The novel moves breathlessly from one family drama to the next—often in front of the neighbors—and touches on some heavy topics along the way, most notably Cody's attempt to come out of the closet. While there's no fairy-tale ending, the story's central romantic conflict is tied up a bit too tidily. Still, the likable main character and fast-paced storytelling will appeal to fans of Aimee Friedman'sThe Year My Sister Got Lucky(Scholastic, 2008) and Meg Cabot'sPants on Fire(HarperCollins, 2007).—Amy S. Pattee, Simmons College, BostonCopyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.