Pretty Crooked

January 16, 2012
When 15-year-old Willa’s mother, an artist, sells some paintings for major money, they move to Paradise Valley, Ariz., and are quickly absorbed into a privileged new life. Down-to-earth Willa is shocked by the displays of affluence at her new school, especially among the Glitterati—three popular girls who bring her into their circle. Willa spends her mother’s savings on designer clothes, but when she finds out that the Glitterati is behind a malicious blog making fun of “The Busteds” (kids who are bussed in from poorer neighborhoods), she seeks revenge by pickpocketing the rich and secretly buying gifts for the Busteds (“I wasn’t just a thief.... I was an equalizer”). Meanwhile, she contends with her crush on a classmate and her mother’s strange behavior. First in a planned trilogy, Ludwig’s debut uses its familiar fish-out-of-water premise to take aim at classism and mean-girl bulling, with Willa’s Robin Hood–style behavior lending the story some freshness. A (potentially frustrating) cliffhanger ending suggests Willa’s troubles will be far more serious in the next installment. Ages 13–up. Agent: Leigh Feldman, Writers House.

July 1, 2012

Gr 8 Up-Willa feels like a bit of a misfit when she starts a new school in the aptly named town of Paradise Valley-until she becomes friends with a group of wealthy, popular girls known as the Glitterati. They seem too good to be true, and of course they are. Once Willa discovers that they are the creators of a nasty blog that mocks and demeans the school's less affluent students, she vows revenge via a redistribution of wealth-or, as she puts it, she begins "kickin' it Robin Hood-style." She embarks on a binge of thievery followed by shopping, and then anonymously delivers designer clothing to the girls targeted by the Glitterati's cyberbullying. It's a fun premise, and a decent first-novel attempt, but the book leaves a few things to be desired. The tone is light and the language is peppered with preppy slang and name-dropping, which gives it a certain zing but also a distinct transience. Most frustrating is that the superficial nature of Willa's campaign is not addressed. It never comes up that the scholarship girls upon whom she bestows her gifts probably have more elemental needs, rendering her upscale charity pretty insensitive. She realizes, in a basic way, that what she's done is wrong (stealing is bad!), but that's as far as her reflection goes. The action careens to an abrupt conclusion, leaving loose ends that seem like a deliberate setup for a sequel. The question is whether the material is compelling enough to merit one.-Emma Burkhart, Springside School, Philadelphia, PA

Copyright 2012 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

February 1, 2012
This debut keeps readers zooming along as a formerly poor girl plays Robin Hood when she strikes it rich. When Willa's artist mom makes some sudden, highly lucrative sales, the two move to a ritzy Arizona neighborhood, complete with a fancy private prep school where Willa worries that she won't fit in. The opposite happens, however, when Willa meets Cherise, who inducts her into the popular "Glitterati" crowd on her first day. Willa revels in the attention and the expensive shopping trips to Neiman Marcus. However, her new friends bully the school's poor scholarship girls to such an extent that it sickens Willa. She decides to even things up by stealing from the rich and giving to the poor. She learns how to pick pockets and locks and then spends her ill-gotten gains on fancy new outfits that she delivers anonymously to the poor girls. But can she get away with her scheme without consequences? Meanwhile, even as Willa tries to avoid the rebellious, superrich, highly attractive Aidan, readers will suspect she'll eventually succumb. Ludwig portrays the school and wealthy neighborhood convincingly. Her characterizations for the most part hit their target, although Willa comes across as smarter than the actions she takes. The story ends with a major mystery unsolved, opening the way for sequels. A solid debut. (Suspense. 12 & up)

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January 1, 2012
Grades 7-10 When Willa's single mom sells several paintings for big money, life suddenly looks up. Newly ensconced in a tony Arizona neighborhood and enrolled at an exclusive prep school, the teen begins to learn how the other half lives. Willa's joy, though, is tempered when she learns her new top-of-the-heap friends are cyberbullies who viciously taunt the school's Hispanic scholarship students. In an effort to seek justice, Willa takes to a life of petty crime, stealing from rich students to give to those poorer. Ludwig wisely allows room for Willa's doubts about her newfound pursuit, while convincingly dealing with the ways bullies can wield power over even those who question their actions. Meanwhile, a subplot involving Willa's mother hints that the artist isn't who she seems to be. Tantalizing last-minute clues, along with an impending romance for Willa, seem to suggest a sequel. This should be an easy sell to fans of Sara Shepard's Pretty Little Liars books.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2012, American Library Association.)