The Rites and Wrongs of Janice Wills

Summary:

For anyone who's ever survived a rite of passage or performed a mating dance at Prom . . .

The Japanese hold a Mogi ceremony for young women coming of age. Latina teenagers get quinceaneras. And Janice Wills of Melva, NC ... has to compete in the Miss Livermush pageant.

Janice loves anthropology--the study of human cultures--and her observations help her identify useful rules in the chaotic world of high school. For instance: Dancing is an effective mating ritual--but only if you're good at it; Hot Theatre Guys will never speak to Unremarkable Smart Girls like Janice and her best friend, Margo; and a Beautiful Rich Girl will always win Melva's annual Miss Livermush pageant.

But when a Hot Theatre Guy named Jimmy Denton takes an interest in Janice, all her scientific certainties explode. For the first time, she has to be part of the culture that she's always observed; and all the charts in the world can't prove how tough--and how sweet--real participation and a real romance can be.

Funny, biting, and full of wisdom, this marks the debut of a writer to watch.

Review:

This book was an alright read, fairly quick, but not the most attention grabbing. In my opinion is was rather dry in places but others were very true in the style of American teenage habits. The format was strange, I felt that the graphs were thrown in somewhat randomly and that their placement could have been better chosen so as not to distract from the story. All in all I liked it, but I’m not sure I would read it again and again. That being said I would give this an A 12+/13+ and probably advise a library visit.