The Children and the Wolves

Gr 10 Up—Bounce, 14, is on a path of horrifying behavior. Her wealthy parents are in the pharmaceutical business, are rarely home, and pay little attention to their sociopathic daughter. Bounce has endless access to drugs like Oxycontin, and she uses them to attract and control male sidekicks Orange and Wiggins. Both come from poverty and troubled homes; Orange is the more willing of the two. When Bounce gets angry at a visiting poet in her Honors English class, she decides to seek revenge through a complicated scheme that involves kidnapping a toddler and some disturbing violence. This book is reminiscent of Truman Capote's In Cold Blood (Random, 1965), only it involves middle school students. It has a healthy infusion of cringe-worthy scenes and a cavalier attitude toward sex. Wiggins is the only character who seems to have any conscience at all, but he is not enough to make readers feel good about this novel. But that is not the author's intention. The raw and edgy story line and language have a powerful impact, and the novel will deservedly find an appreciative audience. Give this one to mature fans of books like Joanne Harris's Blueeyedboy (Doubleday, 2010) and Sapphire's Push (Knopf, 1996).—Jake Pettit, Thompson Valley High School, Loveland, CO