The International Kissing Club

February 1, 2012

Gr 7-10-Piper, Cassidy, Mei, and Izzy have been best friends their whole lives. Unfortunately, they've also been stuck in the small, boring town of Paris, TX. When Piper hears about their high school's foreign exchange program, she knows they have to participate. Before they separate to go to different far-off locales, the girls create a Facebook page called "The International Kissing Club" (IKC), where they share their kissing conquests under false identities. Romantic Piper leaves for Paris, Mei leaves for China in search of love and her birth parents, and Cassidy heads for Australia. Unfortunately, family money worries mean that Izzy ends up stuck behind. The flat characterizations, predictable plotting, and underdeveloped settings make this novel read like a cheap knockoff of Ann Brashares's "Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants" series (Delacorte). Each character's sections are written in indistinguishable third person, a lost opportunity for readers to identify with them. Likewise, the minimal use of the Facebook page to move the plot along is disappointing given how inventively other books have employed social networking. When the girls return home and are betrayed by a former enemy turned Izzy's new friend, the fallout is hard to believe.-Jennifer Barnes, Gleason Library, Carlisle, MA

Copyright 2012 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

February 1, 2012
Grades 9-12 After a humiliating, public pig-kissing incident, high-school junior Piper is desperate to escape her small town (and mean girl Germaine, who posted a video of the event online). A study-abroad program provides the perfect opportunity, and Piper resolves to leave Paris, Texas, for Paris, France, ASAP. Piper's best friendsMei, Cassidy, and Izzydecide they'll study abroad, too. Mei heads to China, Cassidy to Australia, and Costa Ricabound Izzy must unexpectedly stay behind. To keep in touch, and tally hoped-for smooches, they create a Facebook page, enabling themand eventually girls globallyto anonymously share romantic joys and challenges. Interspersing Facebook posts and messages in the main text, the girls' alternating narratives detail their experiences, which include some steamy encounters. While the girls are away, they have many discoveries about life and love, and they realize that what happens online can have real-world consequences. Despite predictable, occasionally contrived elements, this novel incorporates issues ranging from self-esteem to family to dealing with changeand the true meaning of friendship. Includes some strong language and mature scenarios.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2012, American Library Association.)