The Anti-Prom

February 14, 2011
In McDonald's (Boys, Bears, and a Serious Pair of Hiking Boots) third novel for teens, three dissimilar upperclassgirls—popular Bliss, bad girl Jolene, and shy romantic Meg—find that they have something in common on prom night: they have each been wronged. Bliss catches her best friend making out with her boyfriend, and both Jolene and Meg get stood up. Bliss wonders if all her social climbing has been worth it ("I worked so hard to get everything perfect, the way high school is supposed to be. And now I'm left with this ache in my chest, knowing that it was all a lie"); Jolene resents her father's desertion of the family; and Meg is sick of being invisible. Their quest for revenge takes them everywhere, from Dairy Queen to the local college and Jolene's father's office. Alternating between the three girls' perspectives, the novel is lightly wicked fun in formal wear, filled with bickering, breaking and entering, and quick getaways. The girls basically play to type, but grow enough to make their journey an amusing diversion. Ages 14–up.