No Boyz Allowed

July 15, 2012
Street-smart, heartwarming and hopeful without being preachy, the latest from Simone (Upgrade U, 2011, etc.) opens with 16-year-old Gem and her little brother Malik arriving at another in a series of foster homes. Readers of the author's previous books will recognize Gem's new foster family: Cousin Shake, Ms. Minnie, Ms. Grier and Ms. Grier's daughter, Toi, and son, Man-Man. Although Malik is immediately won over by Cousin Shake's warmhearted but goofy antics, Gem has grown distrustful and used to disappointment. In what feels almost like a fairy tale, however, Gem is taken under Man-Man's wing and fortuitously reunited with Pop, the best friend she hasn't seen or heard from since sixth-grade. Support system in place, Gem slowly builds a new life for herself. She meets a boy and starts a romance, develops a rivalry with one of Pop's friends, and even makes moves toward playing basketball, a sport she loves but had given up. The dialogue and narrative voice are fresh, smart and cutting, full of clever comebacks and Internet-generation slang (S.M.H., "I am pissed.org"). Unfortunately, a relationship conflict at the end is resolved in a way that seems to suggest boys should be trusted above girls. Otherwise, warm, uplifting and entertaining. (Fiction. 12 & up)

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November 1, 2012

Gr 9 Up-In a Cinderella story with an unrealistically happy conclusion, Gem Scott, 16, goes from poor, mouthy foster kid to popular, sexy, loved girlfriend. Some of the characters may be familiar to Simone's fans. The author depicts urban street talk quite naturally, and conversations flow with realistic banter. The weakness is the plot, which will either be appreciated as a realistic fantasy, or dismissed as an illusory urban drama. For example, Gem's new foster parent gives her four extra-large shopping bags of items from Forever 21, True Religion, Deliah's, and Hollister, three pairs of sneakers, a pair of Uggs, and two pairs of four-inch stilettos. There is very little struggle in the story. Gem reunites with her best friend, Pop, then snags a handsome thug-turned-athlete and lives a life of love. When she learns that her boyfriend, Ny'eem, has been cheating, it turns out to be a lie, because he truly does love her. These fairy-tale facets balance with some true grit, like Gem's conversation with her younger brother about his bedwetting and her visit to her drug-addicted mother that leaves her spinning. The tension between the high school girls over Ny'eem is excellent, but it resolves too quickly. A fast read for Simone's fans.Pamela Schembri, Newburgh Enlarged City Schools, NY

Copyright 2012 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

August 1, 2012
Grades 8-12 Fuming as she settles into her latest foster home in Newark, New Jersey, Gemini (Gem), 16, protects her little brother, Malik, 8, and even takes responsibility when he steals food, though he blames her for their constant moving around (it is because she's so mean ). Once again the new girl in school, she makes mistakes, as well as new friends and enemies, and she hooks up with a hot guy at a party ( Would her buckling knees hold up in her stilettos? ). They have sex (with a condom), but then she discovers that he has another girlfriendor does he? Filled with contemporary detail, Gem's rapid, funny, first-person narrative is heartbreaking. She cuts school to find her mom, a prostitute who wants Gem to join her on the streets, and while her new foster mom is kind, there's no way that Gem can allow herself to feel that emotional mushy stuff and get hurt again. Like Shortie like Mine (2008) and other titles by Simone, this is an excellent choice for the YALSA Quick Picks audience.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2012, American Library Association.)