City Light

April 1, 1988
George, 17, is a teenager with no definite plans, but his life is nevertheless fairly well mapped out: he is reasonably sure that he'll work in his father's beauty parlor, he might go to college, and he is certain he'll marry his longtime girlfriend, Julie. Julie, however, has other ideas. She breaks up with him, and George can't accept it. To distract himself, he taps into his sister's computer and starts chatting, electronically, with Rosemary. Eventually, he gets over Julie, begins to love Rosemary and is able to confront his parents about his future, which no longer includes beauty parlors. George is a sensitive, completely likeable hero; Julie is relatively unbearable from the outset, and so his grief over her isn't easy to comprehend. Mazer understands all the yearnings and longings of teenagers, but he doesn't set them down in a plot in which each scene contributes in some way to the overall package. In fact, the story twists and turns with interesting, but sometimes unnecessary, developments (until she meets George, Rosemary believes that she is "talking'' to another girl, and George doesn't dissuade her of the notion); but readers will remain involved with the story to the end, even if they have a good idea of how it is going to turn out. Ages 13-up.