A Bad Boy Can Be Good for a Girl

Chick Lit for Teens
Updated January 2007

Personnel manager Kate Mackenzie finds herself in a complicated mess when she’s asked to fire Ida Lopez, the “dessert cart lady” at the New York Journal. Kate’s boss, Amy Jenkins (also known as T.O.D. for “Tyrannical Office Despot” has insisted that Kate make the cut when after Ida refuses to serve dessert to Stuart Hertzog, the paper’s lead lawyer, who has been rude and condescending too many times for Ida to tolerate. When Ida sues the company for wrongful dismissal, Kate gets deposes by Hertzog and, it turns out, by his hunky younger brother, Mitchell.

Kate’s life is complicated by more than her work situation, however. Her ex-boyfriend of ten years, Dale, is hounding her to reunite, but she isn’t interested—he hasn’t been able to commit for a decade, and he also hasn’t ever really grown up. That doesn’t stop him from writing songs about her and serenading her at work, however, and interfering with her burgeoning romance with Mitchell. And she’s homeless on top of it all—surfing from her friend Jen’s couch to the penthouse apartment of her co-worker, Dolly, whose affair with their boss, Peter, adds an additional complicating (and funny) factor to her life.

Told entirely in emails, phone messages, faxes, and letters, Boy Meets Girl is a fast, funny, slapstick story about relationships that will appeal to fans of Cabot’s young adult novels (The Princess Diaries series and All-American Girl). Fans of Cabot’s previous adult novel, The Boy Next Door, will enjoy cameo appearances by some familiar characters, too.

As the anonymous advice columnist for her high school newspaper, Jenny Greenly has earned the trust of teachers and administrators. So when popular movie star Luke Striker flies in from Hollywood to research real high school life in small town America for an upcoming role, Jenny is entrusted with knowledge of his true identity and assigned to be his buddy during his visit. Naturally, something is bound to go wrong.

Jenny’s best friend, for example, has an enormous crush on Luke Striker, but Jenny can’t reveal his identity. Jenny’s boyfriend is suspicious of the amount of time he’s spending with Luke, and the boy she’s always thought of as just a good friend is starting to act differently towards her.

Fans of Cabot’s Princess Diaries books and All American Girl will like this light-hearted romantic comedy which, despite it’s fairly unrealistic and predictable plot, once again features likeable characters, a lot of humor, and a fast pace.

If you’re a fan of any of Meg Cabot’s books—The Princess Diaries, All-American Girl, or Boy Meets Girl—, or the Ann Brashares “Traveling Pants” titles, then you’ll appreciate the humor in Melissa Kantor’s first novel.

Jan Miller is convinced that she’s destined for a boring, loveless life. Her best friend, Rebecca, is wealthy and has some famous connections—more importantly, she’s just been named one of New York’s “It” girls. And now she’s dating a college student who think she’s older than she is.

When an old friend moves back to town, however, Jan’s life gets a lot more interesting. After an embarrassing reunion during a classroom enactment of the love scene from Romeo and Juliet, Jan changes her initial reaction to her old friend, Josh, and decides that he is much cuter than she remembered. Her attempts to get him to see her as more than just his younger sister’s babysitter are fraught with complications.

Confessions of a Not-It Girl is fun, light-hearted, and sure to appeal to readers who’ve liked authors Meg Cabot, Sarah Dessen, and Ann Brashares.

The Boyfriend List by E. Lockhart

Ruby Oliver goes to visit a therapist at her parent’s insistence when they become worried about her frequent panic attacks.

As an exercise to help her talk about herself and why she might be panicking, Ruby’s therapist, Dr. Z., asks her to make a list of all of her boyfriends…well, maybe not boyfriends, exactly, but boys who have had an impact on her thinking and her life.

As Ruby begins describing her relationships with everyone from Adam Cox (nursery school) to the imaginary Tommy Hazard, pieces of her life begin to fall into place, and the reasons for her anxiety become clearer.

Each of Ruby’s visits to the past ends with her comparing that boy to Jackson, her first and possibly the only real boyfriend on the list. He lasted six months, and for reasons that slowly become clear, the relationship ended—and along with it, the friendship Ruby shared with her three closest pals, Kim, Nora, and Cricket.

Reading Ruby’s story will make you feel like you’re talking to a close friend—she’s funny, sassy, and has a story to tell that most girls will relate to. And best yet—the story isn’t over! Ruby’s story continues in The Boy Book.

Mackler, Carolyn. The Earth, My Butt, and Other Big, Round Things. © 2003. (Fiction).
Overweight and hounded frequently by her mother about her appearance, Virginia Shreves struggles humorously throughout her freshman year to lose weight, deal with typical beginning-of-high-school traumas, and make new friends.

Besides her mother’s badgering, Virginia’s life is complicated when her best friend, Shannon, moves to Walla Walla, Washington, leaving her without protection when she is harassed by a group of thin, beautiful classmates. Additionally complicating are the attentions of her (male) friend, Froggy, who seems interested in more than just a friendship.Virginia handles these problems pretty well on her own, but a disturbing phone call brings news about her older brother that she struggles to cope with.

Luckily, she’s maintained her strong friendship with Shannon, even though her friend is across the country, and the bond between the two of them is enough to sustain Virginia.

Fans of Sarah Dessen, Meg Cabot, Louise Rennison, and Joan Bauer will appreciate the humor and real-life story of Virginia, who is a likeable, and imperfect narrator, who gains strength from her experience and her friendship.

r sixteenth birthday, which also happens to be Leap Day—the 29^th of February, which only comes every 4 years—Josie Taylor tries out for the part of Juliet in the school play, tries to catch the attention of her crush, Grant, receives a mysterious note from her best friend, takes her driver’s test, and enjoys a wealth of surprises from her parents, who love showering her with gifts on her official, real, and very rare birthday.

Besides hearing first-hand from Josie about everything that happens to her on this special and unique day, we also get glimpses into the minds and futures of other characters in the book, whose thoughts are interspersed between the chapters that Josie narrates. These interruptions offer a really unique texture to the novel that feels a little bit like the snapshot images that show “what else” in the movie Run, Lola, Run.

I especially appreciated Josie’s relationship with her older brother, Rob, who, although he teases her a little bit, ultimately turns out to be a pretty nice guy. Josie’s circle of friends display some hints of being slightly competitive and imperfect, but they, too, turn out to be supportive and fun, and not without a few secrets of their own…

Wendy Mass has done a great of creating a believable and memorable setting, too, which isn’t something I notice about most books. But Leap Day takes place in Orlando, Florida, and many of the character’s lives are affected somehow by the omni-presence of Disney World—including Josie’s father, who has a secret desire to become a part of the Magic Kingdom.

This fun, thoughtful, and unique story will appeal to fans of Sarah Dessen, Meg Cabot, Ann Brashares (author of The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants and its sequel, The Second Summer of the Sisterhood), and the Jonah Black series.

A Bad Boy Can Be Good for a Girl. by Tanya Lee Stone.

Josie, Nicolette, and Aviva have one thing in common: they’ve all fallen for “bad boy” T.L. and suffered the consequences.

For Josie, falling for T.L. meant being a freshman singled out for attention by a popular senior…it also meant having to stand up for herself when he wanted more than she was willing to give.

Nicolette prides herself on being as cavalier about relationships as the guys she knows…so she’s surprised when she finds herself falling for T.L., and crushed to discover that he’s been using her—and telling everyone.

Aviva should know better. She’s smart and a good student, but that doesn’t keep her from ignoring the signs that T.L. might not be as in love with her as he claims. Maybe he’s just after something else. Maybe she’ll have to find out the hard way.

If you’ve ever been involved with a guy who had something to learn about respect; if you’ve ever had your heart broken; if you’ve ever wanted to get even when someone did you wrong, this is the book for you.