manicpixiedreamgirl

February 11, 2013
Tyler Darcy has been obsessed with Becky Webb ever since glimpsing her in all her tattooed, ringer T-shirt–wearing glory freshman year. Never mind that he doesn’t exchange words with Becky for an entire year or that he gets a girlfriend, Sydney, in the meantime. “The adorable eccentric sweetheart who dazzles a broody male lead,” is how Sydney defines the manic-pixie-dream-girl stereotype; Becky isn’t that girl, but Tyler is fairly happy to let her be, idolizing and idealizing her rather than getting to know her. Leveen’s (Zero) story unfolds mostly in flashbacks to Tyler’s freshman and sophomore years; the present-day action takes place on the very drunken night when Tyler is forced to decide where he stands with Sydney and Becky. The time shifts give the story a cinematic sense of tension, but it’s the relationships between the novel’s teenage characters that are the real standouts. Tyler’s crass banter with his buddies, his snarky but supportive relationship with his sister, and his botched dealings with both Becky and Sydney are entirely realistic. Ages 14–up. Agent: Jennifer Mattson, Andrea Brown Literary Agency.

March 15, 2013
Nothing gives a boy moral superiority like being awkwardly aroused by the least popular girl in high school. Tyler's friends call him "jerk," "idiot," "dick" and "asshead." Could he possibly be that bad? Is it that much of a problem that he's been dating sweet Sydney Barrett for years while crushing hard on friendless Becky Webb, shunned by everyone else in school for being the town slut? In a narrative that interleaves exposition-heavy flashbacks with his present (wasted in the park, drunk on butterscotch-pudding shooters), Tyler describes the history of his relationship with Becky. Perhaps that should be his nonrelationship, because he has spent years being unkind to Sydney while gazing dreamily at Becky's tattoo from across the cafeteria. Tyler's tortured overtures to Becky would be more believably redemptive if he didn't share in his classmates' double standard of shaming, needing to find a reason for Becky's sexual activities before he can find her worthy. Tyler, apparently, deserves a medal for choosing not to have meaningless sex with a suffering friend; what a hero. If Becky actually were a manic pixie dream girl, there'd at least be some whimsy breaking up the dragging, self-centered, deeply unkind angst. (Fiction. 14-16)

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July 1, 2013

Gr 9 Up-Tyler Darcy, 17, is in love, but not with Sydney, the girl who's been his steady for the past two years. He looks back on his first day of freshman year, when Becky became his unending obsession before Sydney even came into the picture. He knew nothing about her when their eyes met in a cafeteria line. That's pretty much the extent of the encounter, but from that moment on, Tyler makes her the star of his evolving short story. He writes Becky into his perfect dream girl. Over time, as a friendship forms between the two, he can't see past the character he has created. He makes excuses for one telling incident after another, and because everyone else seems to know about her reputation, including Sydney, Becky assumes that Tyler does, too. It's not until his short story is published by a literary magazine that both Sydney and Becky are forced to face the truth. Tyler is not in love with Sydney; he is in love with a girl that Becky can never hope to be. In this spare, well-written romance, Leveen points out the many ways in which we, often unwittingly, deceive ourselves and those around us when we fall in love. Teens will recognize themselves in the course of their own early romances, and possibly begin to realize what a messy business love can be.-Cary Frostick, Mary Riley Styles Public Library, Falls Church, VA

Copyright 2013 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

April 15, 2013
Grades 9-12 It's hard not to love the title of Leveen's latest, though it is somewhat misleading. The object of 17-year-old Ty's obsession, Becky Webb, is more of a moody goth. For three years, Ty has been maneuvering to get closer to Becky, maybe even to touch her. Did we mention Ty already has a girlfriend, Sydney? He does. It's a setup ripe for standard romantic comedy follies, so it's a pleasure to watch it play out into something more affecting. Sydney is a wonderful side character who deserves bettersexy, smart, and indulgent of Ty's undying fantasy. Becky, meanwhile, feels less freshshe is the inscrutable girl with a checkered past who just needs a guy to be nice to her. It is Ty who emerges as the (well-meaning) jerk, treating Syd shabbily while overidealizing Becky. The story unfolds over flashbacks during the night when Ty and Becky might finally hook up, and though it begins comedically (I lacked the testicular fortitude to make contact), it quickly turns morosenot a bad thing for folks who like their romances unresolved and realistic.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2013, American Library Association.)