The Thing About the Truth

Gr 9 Up–Kelsey and Isaac are new to Concordia Public. She is an honor-roll student who was expelled from Concordia Prep, with the why not revealed until well into the novel. The lie she tells Isaac about the reason is central to her later problems at school. Isaac is a classic bad boy rich kid, whose father is a state senator. He has his own problems with honesty. The story is told from alternating perspectives and chronologies. These narrative and plot devices make it a bit different from the run-of-the-mill high-school drama/romance. The language is sometimes crude, but the voices ring true partly because of that. Readers won’t find any saints in this book. The pacing, plot, and voices make it a good choice for light reading.–Nina Sachs, Walker Memorial Library, Westbrook, ME