Prettiest Doll

Gr 6–8—Olivia Tatum has won beauty pageants since she was a small child. Now 13, she is starting to question this activity, thinking her only asset is being pretty. Meanwhile, her overweight mother and pageant coach are drilling her for the upcoming Prettiest Doll competition, and she's had enough. Then she meets Dan, an unusually short 15-year-old who has landed in her Missouri town, camping out, having run away from his home in Texas after his mother pressured him to get growth hormone shots. He intends to go to Chicago, and, after a sleepless night, Liv decides to join him. During the bus ride north, they talk about their lives, and in Chicago make their way to the apartment of Liv's deceased father's brother. They visit some of the city's sights as their mutual attraction grows. Both of them are trying to work on issues with the adults in their lives, but as runaways, they are wary of encountering police, spending a risky night hiding in a movie theater. Dan gathers the courage to go see his divorced father, and the encounter is an exchange laced with disappointment and anger, but reflecting on it, Dan sees himself anew. Liv also has a candid talk with Uncle Fred, and both teens return to their homes with changed perspectives. Considering the vulnerability of Liv, the self-assertion she seeks, and the hint of romance, this coming-of-age novel will strike a resonant chord with middle school girls.—Susan W. Hunter, Riverside Middle School, Springfield, VT