Queen of Likes

Homzie, Hillary. Queen of Likes
April 5th 2016 by Aladdin
E ARC from Edelweiss Above the Treeline

Karma is addicted to her phone, and to posting things and commenting on other people's photos on SnappyPic. When she spends most of a Bar Mitzvah in the bathroom on her phone, her mother is outraged and takes it away from her, giving her a flip phone instead, since this isn't the first time Karma has run afoul of the rules. Karma is worried that she will lose all of her popularity-- she has a ton of followers, not only at her school, but at other schools as well. And how will she communicate with her friends? It's especially irritating when the school has Spirit Week, and Karma is supposed to be in charge of social media. She manages to keep up, barely, by borrowing a friend's phone, but runs into problems there as well, since students are supposed to have their phones off and away during school, and her friend's phone is taken by the principal. Will Karma ever be able to get her phone back AND keep up with her socializing?

Strengths: This certainly is an accurate depiction of how addicted students are to their phones! Out students are allowed to have them out at lunch, and it makes for sad and pathetic socializing. I think a lot of readers would pick this up. 

Weaknesses: Like any technology in a book, this will date very quickly. Remember MySpace? Pagers? Blackberries? (What were those? No idea.) I still love The Mark of Conte (1976) by Sonia Levitin, but most tech books don't last more than ten years. There are a few inconsistencies in the book as well-- they are told to have social media, but no one is allowed to check it at school? 

What I really think: Since this is only available in paperback, I probably won't buy it, since paperbacks don't last ten WEEKS in the library. 



Barson, K.A. Charlotte Cuts it Out
April 5th 2016 by Viking Books for Young Readers
E ARC from Edelweiss Above the Treeline

Loved this author's 45 Pounds More or Less, and also enjoyed this one. However, I read it right after my recent bionic foot installation, and have insufficient memory of it, other than I liked it. And Charlotte was kind of a brat. So, I'm purchasing, but going with description from Goodreads.com:

"Now Charlotte and Lydia are juniors, in a Cosmetology Arts program where they’ll get on-the-job training and college credits at the same time. The Grand Plan is right on schedule.  Which means it’s time for Step Two: Win the Winter Style Showcase, where Cos Arts and Fashion Design teams team up to dazzle the judges with their skills.  Charlotte is sure that she and Lydia have it locked up—so sure, in fact, that she makes a life-changing bet with her mother, who wants her to give up cos for college.

And that’s when things start going off the rails.

As the clock ticks down to the night of the Showcase, Charlotte has her hands full. Design divas. Models who refuse to be styled. Unexpectedly stiff competition. And then, worst of all, Lydia—her BFF and Partner in Cos—turns out to have a slightly different Grand Plan . "