Peace, Love & Baby Ducks by Lauren Myracle

This entry would have been much different had I done it last week when I started it. Since that time, I got to hang out with Lauren Myracle. I must tell you she is totally cool and amazing. If you ever get the chance to meet her or hear her speak you should. In the mean time, you should read her books - maybe this one.

Since I read Shine, I have read three other books by Lauren - all exploring the relationships between young women. Of course there is much more to the books than that, but that is what I take from them. Being a guy, the insight into the interactions between the teen girls is new to me, and I find it interesting.

In this story, Carly is returning to Holy Redeemer, a Christian Preparatory School (made up of rich, society kids) after spending part of her summer doing rough and dirty service work in the wilds of Tennessee. She wants to be real and not plastic like so many of the girls at her school. She is happy that her younger sister Anna will be joining her for the first time at Holly Redeemers. If only it were that easy for Carly...

One unexpected turn is that her sister is now hot - meaning her breast size has increased enormously. How many times on the first day of school must Carly endure people telling her how hot her little sister is? Then there is her disastrous haircut she gets when her dad will not pay for the good stylist. Carly is just not like the others in her school - socially or religiously. A new friend, a guy she likes, a sadistic gym teacher, a party out of control and some lost little baby ducks all make up for an up and down year for Carly.

I think Lauren does an excellent job creating a characters with depth. Carly makes mistakes - some are frustrating, but they make her more real. I don't know which Lauren Myracle book I will read next, but I look forward to getting know more of her characters.

For more info, check out the Indianapolis Public Library catalog.