Back When You Were Easier to Love

Gr 8 Up—It's the beginning of the school year, and Joy's boyfriend, Zan, has graduated early and abruptly gone to a California college without leaving her his contact information. Befuddled and still obsessed with him, she enlists the help of his friend Noah to help find her lost love and put some closure to the relationship. After a road trip to California, which concludes with an exciting zinger and a new romance, Joy gains insight into herself and learns important lessons about judging people at face value. Set in a fictional Mormon community in Utah, this is a tame romance heavily peppered with religious values; e.g., kissing is forbidden in this town. Joy's first-person narrative features flashbacks showing that the relationship was based on the couple's view of themselves as nonconformists in a town of the faithful. Joy's character is particularly well drawn—the author gives readers the perfect image of a girl who can think of nothing but her boyfriend to the detriment of her other relationships. The story moves quickly and will resonate with religious teens, those who relish the idea of being outsiders, and, for that matter, any fan of romance.—Shawna Sherman, Hayward Public Library, CA