So Much Closer

April 18, 2011
Brooke doesn't really know Scott Abrams, but she knows that they are "supposed to be together." When she finds out he is moving to New York City, she follows him there, moving in with her estranged father and finishing out high school in the city. Readers may be swept up in this romantic, farfetched premise (hey, it worked in Felicity), but Brooke herself feels like a cipher; she is described as "angry" and an underachieving genius, but the reasons for her poor performance are unclear, and her narration doesn't exactly betray genius-level insights. But even if Brooke is somewhat underdeveloped, she is easy to root for as she begins to realize, "No one can be everything you want them to be.... It's up to me to create the life I want." Mostly, readers will fall in love with Brooke's New York City and appreciate Colasanti's (Something Like Fate) up-to-the-minute details (the High Line park, the Big Gay Ice Cream Truck) and descriptions, such as "how crowded the streets are at two in the morning," as Brooke falls asleep to the sounds of her new city. Ages 12âup.

April 15, 2011

In a voice that is alternately clichéd, naive and spot-on, high-school junior Brooke narrates a novel that explores familiar territory about teenage angst.

For two years, Brooke has been less concerned about her future than she is about Scott, the boy she´s secretly lusted after. Acting on her certainty that they are meant to be together, Brooke attempts to reveal her feelings to Scott. Before she can, Scott announces his family is moving to New York City. Brooke does her research and coincidentally finds that her father, with whom she is not spoken in six years, lives around the corner from Scott's new home and that if she moves, they will attend the same school during their senior year. Once they finally begin dating, though, Brooke realizes Scott enjoys the physical part of their relationship much more than discovering who she is. Colasanti's Manhattan is a teenager's paradise, with late-night rendezvous at sandwich shops, rooftop hideaways and low parental involvement. The contrast between Brooke's dull New Jersey town and life in the big city will resonate with teens craving a change. Although predictable in its outcome and characterization, this quick read will satisfy those looking for a light beach book.

The escapist setting at least partially makes up for flat characters and a rather ludicrous plot. (Fiction. 12 & up)

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August 1, 2011

Gr 8-10-Brooke, 17, is dissatisfied. Her relationship with her mother is strained, she is smart but feels no motivation to succeed in school, and she pines for a boy with whom she has never even spoken. When she discovers that Scott is moving to New York City, to the same neighborhood as her estranged father, Brooke decides that a change in her own life is also necessary. What follows is the bittersweet tale of her transformation from a suburban Jersey girl whose life is defined by her infatuation into a New Yorker who has new friends, plans for her future, and a better relationship with both of her parents. While not everything works out exactly as she had hoped, and not everything is fully resolved by the close of the book, Brooke's story ends happily and with love. Parallels to Sarah Dessen are inevitable, but the narrative voice Colasanti has created is thoughtful and likable in its own way. The protagonist is enviably pretty, intelligent, brave, and, because of her workaholic father, has the freedom and money to run around New York City. But she is also self-deprecating and flawed. Colasanti has once again formulated a teen romance that feels realistic, which will make this novel a hit with readers.-Jennifer Miskec, Longwood University, Farmville, VA

Copyright 2011 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

July 1, 2011
Grades 9-12 Colasanti was a high-school science teacher for 10 years before embarking on such popular novels as When It Happens (2006), Waiting for You (2009), and Something like Fate (2010). Perhaps this accounts for the ease with which she captures teen language and behavior. Her latest is a bouncy, captivating example of the teenage romantic comedy. The fact that there's a troubling backstory (heroine Brooke is a still-traumatized survivor of parental divorce) adds to the credibility of Brooke's emotions and gives extra zest to her first-person narrative. The novel follows Brooke as she moves from South Jersey to a challenging high school in Brooklyn to be near her crushwho tells her, in their only conversation before school ends, that he is moving to Manhattan. Brooke's hobby of origami is an enchanting metaphor throughout for her working with what's at hand and coming up with something original. Colasanti fans, as well as those of Sarah Dessen and Lauren Barnholdt, will love this. A fun exploration of a city and a teen's dreams.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2011, American Library Association.)