| School & Education |
| Girls & Women |
| Social Themes |
| Young Adult Fiction |
| Peer Pressure |
Summary
Summary
From the author of the break-out hit ttyl, a dark and utterly readable take on the hierarchy of high school girls. There are Gossip Girls and Mean Girls but no one has come as close to the dark heart of high-school girl politics as Lauren Myracle does in this shivery smart, wonderfully strange story of a high school where popularity can be stolen. No one notices Jane--not the jocks, the stoners, the debaters, the drama geeks, the cheerleaders, and especially not the Bitches, the school royalty made up of one girl from each class who's so transcendently beautiful and fascinating that no one can help but worship her. Imagine Jane's surprise when the Bitches approach her to be their freshman member. She wants this kind of popularity more than anything, but when she discovers the sinister secret of the Bitches' power, she's forced to make the toughest choice of her life. This savagely funny book will be the talk of the season.
F&P level: Z+
Author Notes
Lauren Myracle is an American author of YA fiction. She was born on May 15, 1969, in Brevard, North Carolina and grew up in Atlanta, Georgia. She attended the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where she received her BA in English and Psychology. After graduation, she taught middle-school in Georgia and participated in an exchange and teaching program (JET) in Japan. She would go on to earn an MA in English from Colorado State University and an MFA in Writing for Children and Young Adults from Vermont College.
Since her first novel, Kissing Kate, was published in 2003, Myracle has written numerous books and series including: the Internet Girls series, The Winnie Years, Flower Power, the Life of Ty and the Wishing Series.
(Bowker Author Biography)
Reviews (5)
School Library Journal Review
Gr 9 Up-When plain Jane is asked to be one of her high school's ultra-elite clique, "the Bitches," she can't believe it. She's never been remotely popular. The freshman goes through a secret initiation, and all she needs to do is steal something each week from a classmate and leave the object in the office of Lurlene Lear, the early religion teacher who, unbeknownst to Jane, is the controlling force behind the group. During the week in question, the person to whom the object belonged wanes in popularity, while adoration for the Bitch grows. At first, Jane's conscience bothers her, but finding ways to justify her actions becomes much easier as she becomes unbelievably popular. Later, when the Bitches gang up on an innocent girl, Camilla, and threaten to harm her, Jane's conscience revives. She is outraged and calls a halt to their behavior. She expects temporary displeasure from the other Bitches, but doesn't expect them to turn on her. When no one likes Jane, she becomes truly aware of the price she paid for her short-lived popularity. In the end, her best boy friend comes around and she can, at least, count on his loyal friendship. There are magical elements in this novel, and plenty of creepy touches. Both take away from the book's realism, but add deliciously to its suspense. The language and situations are provocative, but teens will gobble the story up.-Catherine Ensley, Latah County Free Library District, Moscow, ID (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Publisher's Weekly Review
When the uber-popular clique known as the Bitches asks freshman Jane to be their fourth, they assure her that her life will change forever. There's only one catch: each week Jane must steal something from another girl and put it on the desk of a creepy teacher known as Lurl the Pearl (the girls explain that the only way to gain power is to steal it from another: "For one to rise, another must fall"). Jane thinks it's "an initiation... to prove I'm, like, loyal," until she feels it work and knows some sort of witchcraft is at play. Ultimately, she has to decide if her sudden elite status is worth the cost. The Bitches themselves come across as archetypes (Keisha's responsible, Bitsy's mean and Mary Bryan's sweet), but the feral cats roaming the campus deepen the eerie factor, and Jane's father's desertion of his family and the Bitches' own tragedies add some depth to their characters. Bitsy leads a menacing attack on an unpopular girl that seems to contradict the plot's often-playful spirit, and even Jane's own eventual fall is fairly cruel. Still, readers are likely to get swept away along with Jane as she enjoys gourmet food in the cafeteria, sudden attention from her crush and a birthday party thrown by her classmates (even though it's not her birthday). Ultimately Myracle's (ttyl) novel is an addictive read with a poignant message about the price of popularity. Ages 14-up. (Apr.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Horn Book Review
In this compelling dark comedy, a suspension of disbelief is necessary to accept the idea that, with the help of mysterious and supernatural powers, the cool girls can siphon popularity off of others. Unremarkable Jane is chosen by the clique to be its newest member and is inducted into a world full of cruelty and surreal hijinks in this satisfying page-turner. (c) Copyright 2010. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted. All rights reserved.
Kirkus Review
Where does high school popularity come from? In cutthroat Crestview Academy, it comes from black magic. Like everyone at Crestview, dorky Janie and Alicia want to be liked by the Bitches, the three popular girls who rule the school. Janie can scarcely believe it when Mary Bryan, Keisha and Bitsy invite her into their clique. Every year, apparently, the Bitches choose a desperate, nerdy girl and make her over into a queen. The cost? Not so high: Janie needs to steal something inexpensive from another student and leave it on the desk of creepy teacher Lurl the Pearl. Isn't it a coincidence that the student Janie steals from--best friend Alicia--becomes immediately unpopular and klutzy? Alas, Janie discovers her wondrous new popularity is rooted in evil powers. Though Keisha and Mary Bryan cause minimal harm, Bitsy is not so magnanimous. If only Janie could keep her popularity and be a good person, too. No feel-good ending here: Myracle's self-involved, callous, and cruel high-schoolers are the worst of the breed. Darkly comic, well realized and upsetting. (Fiction. YA) Copyright ©Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Booklist Review
Gr. 8-11. The author of ttyl BKL My 15 04 offers another look at the politics of high-school popularity, adding an unexpected blend of horror, fantasy, and dark comedy. Freshman Jane thinks she's a loser, so she's ecstatic when her school's elite clique, the Bitches, tap her to join. Then she hears rumors that the Bitches earn their magnetism through witchcraft, siphoning popularity away from other girls. It's bitchcraft, Jane jokes, before realizing the truth behind the gossip and becoming embroiled in a terrifying power struggle. Like a campfire ghost story, this has plenty of over-the-top elements that serve little purpose other than to amplify the eerie atmosphere, and explanations of how the Bitches originated are labored. Even so, teens will recognize the raw, realistic portrayal of brutal high-school bullying (including graphic slurs such as cunt and dick ), as well as Jane's well-characterized yearning to be accepted, and horror fans will shiver as their internal creep-meters shoot into overload. --Gillian Engberg Copyright 2005 Booklist
