Last Dance at the Frosty Queen
It's 1988 in Harker City, Kansas, population "1,700 smiling faces," and Arty Flood's one goal after graduation is to leave town. There are a few complications, however: His employer owes him $1,400 in back wages, he's having a steamy affair with his art teacher, the local sheriff has blackmailed Arty into dating his daughter, and the family's funeral home is failing. Then the girl of his dreams literally swims into his life. Vanessa, a California girl with problems of her own, helps Arty to see Harker City through an outsider's eyes. Vanessa is a bit too perfect, but her role as a catalyst works well, pushing Arty's first-person perceptions to shift from self-centered and one dimensional to a more mature view of his small town—a place so clearly evoked that readers will find themselves craving those Frosty Queen Zip Burgers. Though the chapters are short and fast paced, there is a lot going on in this first novel, including explicit sex and salty language; but older YAs will respond strongly to Arty's breezily narrated yearnings for life outside of his "hick" hometown. Rutan, Lynn--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.