Breaking Dawn

Gr 8 Up—Dawn, guilt-ridden because she accidentally outs her best friend, struggles to deal with his suicide. Between the physical and verbal bullying at school, and the abuse inflicted by his alcoholic mother's boyfriend at home, Perry's life was bleak. He further suffered when Dawn chose to spend time with her new boyfriend, neglecting him in the process. The book is billed as a "gritty, quick" read, but although the subject matter is serious and timely, readers will struggle to connect with the characters. It feels like the action is set in a strange time warp—none of the characters owns a cell phone; they rely on home answering machines to connect with one another. Dawn orders a dress for a dance from a Macy's catalog, and names like Terri and Gary abound. The font is large with ample white space, but the dialogue feels forced, and it is often an unrealistic reflection of today's modern teenagers. Look elsewhere for hi/lo fiction.—Lindsay Cesari, Baldwinsville School District, NY