The latest trend in teen fiction as I’ve been reading it is teen drinking and drunk driving.
- Where it Began by Ann Redisch Stampler (March 2012)
- Princesses of Iowa by M. Molly Backes (May 2012)
- My Life in Black and White by Natasha Friend (June 2012)
- My Life Next Door by Huntley Fitzpatrick (June 2012)
I liked all of these books to varying degrees, and I’d recommend them to the right readers. However, if I were to require reading on teenage drinking or drinking and driving it would be The Princesses of Iowa. Not even the whole book. Just the prologue. It illustrates exactly what’s wrong with the way we talk about drugs and alcohol with young people. I hope it will open the discussion beyond “don’t do it” to a more honest and inclusive consideration of the decisions kids make and the consequences that result. Highly recommended.
Twin Cities locals can hear Molly Backes read from The Princesses of Iowa at the Red Balloon Bookshop Friday, April 27th.
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