"The eventually internationally recognized writer Lily Blennerhassett" spends her thirteenth summer missing her best friend and keeping a journal of her boring life at home and exciting newly-discovered relatives. Distributed by Syndetic Solutions, Inc.

Kimmel (In the Stone Circle) introduces a 13-year-old narrator who is by turns chirpy, sardonic, glib and melodramatic and always likable. An aspiring novelist, Lily relays her story through journal entries whose various writing styles (first-person narrative, scripted dialogue, play-by-play reporting) help keep the tale moving at a brisk and entertaining clip. Lily laments the fact that she's stuck with "sadly unexciting parents" who keep her away from "everything interesting, loud, frosted, or exceeding 55 miles per hour," and understandably becomes intrigued by distant relatives she meets at a family wedding. The free-spirited LeBlancs and their daughter are not only physically striking and elegantly dressed, but they are, well, cool. Self-described environmentalists and vegetarians, the trio defies hotel rules and takes a midnight swim in the pool convincing Lily to join them. As this family repeatedly charms and swindles Lily, readers will foresee the consequences long before she does and may well be a bit frustrated by her naivetà. But Lily's infatuation gives way to disgust and remorse after the LeBlancs (whose name is actually "White") finally go too far. There's a lesson to be learned here and Kimmel delivers it humorously and affectingly. Kids will deem Lily cool indeed. Ages 9-13. (Nov.) Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. From: Reed Elsevier Inc. Copyright Reed Business Information

Gr 5-8-Lily Blennerhassett's summer can't get any worse. Her best friend has left to attend Young Executive Camp and life at home is absolutely uninteresting. To stave off the boredom, she records her up-to-the-minute thoughts and the details of her life in her journal. Then she meets Charles and Veronique LeBlanc and their daughter Karma at cousin Delia's wedding. The LeBlancs are sophisticated, they care about the environment, and they DO things. Lily gets swept up in their causes, recording all the events in her diary, which also details how these professional con artists use this naive 13-year-old, abuse her trust, and eventually sue her family for $1.3 million. The pacing of the book is fast and smooth. Attuned readers will catch on to the con game, as there's a hint of unease in Lily's meetings with Karma that's exciting yet creepy. Lily is a likable teen who wants more than she has, only to discover that what she has is pretty darn good. By book's end, she has changed from a whiny kid who judges everyone to a wiser person who can question those judgments.-Linda Bindner, Truman State University, Kirksville, MOCopyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. From: Reed Elsevier Inc. Copyright Reed Business Information

Gr. 4-8. The popularity of Louise Rennison's Angus, Thongs and Full-Frontal Snogging (2000) has produced a number of humorous books in diary form. Kimmel follows the trend in this funny, fast-moving, if somewhat self-conscious, novel. Thirteen-year-old Lily, burdened with boring parents, plans to be an author. Summer looks bleak, with Lily's best friend, Charlotte, away at Young Executives Camp. Forced to attend a wedding in a horrible dress, Lily is delighted to meet Cool People --Karma LeBlanc and her parents, distant relatives who flaunt the rules of society. Despite her parents' warnings not to associate with them, Lily succumbs to the LeBlancs' flattery and the chance to be cool. They convince Lily to hand over the keys to her family's beach house without telling her parents. But are the LeBlancs who they seem to be? Readers can see trouble approaching, but Lily doesn't notice a thing until it's all over, and she reads what she's written in her diary. She discovers that the diary has all of the makings of an actual book--drama, suspense, foreshadowing--maybe she's a writer after all. LouiseBrueggeman. From: Syndetics Solutions, Inc. Distributed by Syndetic Solutions, Inc.