Schneider, Robyn. Better than yesterday.SCHNEIDER, Robyn. Better than yesterday. Random House, Delacorte. 220p. c2007. 978-0-385-73345-8. $15.99. S YA novels frequently use a journey as a vehicle for the protagonist's exploration and maturation maturation /mat·u·ra·tion/ (mach-u-ra´shun) 1. the process of becoming mature. 2. attainment of emotional and intellectual maturity. 3. . In this case, the protagonists, four friends, don't go far: from their upper-crust private school, Hilliard Academy, to the streets of New York New York, state, United States New York, Middle Atlantic state of the United States. It is bordered by Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut, and the Atlantic Ocean (E), New Jersey and Pennsylvania (S), Lakes Erie and Ontario and the Canadian province of . One of their group, Blake, mysteriously disappeared after his freshman year, then reappeared in his senior year. Yet, he is troubled and in spite of his happy-go-lucky manner he is in emotional turmoil. Soon he ditches school and heads for parties in the Big Apple. His friends--Skylar, "the school slut"; Charlie, "the school grind"; and Marissa, "the school nerd"--quickly risk their academic standing to find and reclaim him. They do this by scoping out various parties on the New York City New York City: see New York, city. New York City City (pop., 2000: 8,008,278), southeastern New York, at the mouth of the Hudson River. The largest city in the U.S. college scene, all while staying in a luxury hotel. In the process, Skylar shows she is brilliant and courageous and not slutty at all. Charlie comes out from under the thumb of his dominating father, and both Skylar and Charlie come to appreciate Marissa's uniqueness. Skylar and Charlie take turns as the narrative voice, and each is distinctive and amusing. The book is rife rife adj. rif·er, rif·est 1. In widespread existence, practice, or use; increasingly prevalent. 2. Abundant or numerous. with cultural allusions to shopping icons such as Prada, iPods, and Sex and the City. This is life among the pubescent pubescent /pu·bes·cent/ (pu-bes´int) 1. arriving at the age of puberty. 2. covered with down or lanugo. pu·bes·cent adj. 1. wealthy and worldly. The themes are friendship and independence. Sexual liaisons and drugs and drinking are a humming undertone but never depicted in the manner of, say, Prep. In the end, all is well and all four are headed to the colleges of their choice. It's not deep, but this is an escape novel with a message. Myrna Marler, Assoc. Prof., BYU BYU Brigham Young University BYU Bayou BYU Bob's Your Uncle BYU Bayreuth, Germany - Bindlacher Berg (Airport Code) BYU Beyond Your Understanding , Laie, HI S--Recommended for senior high school students. |
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