cover image Just Be Gorgeous

Just Be Gorgeous

. HarperCollins Publishers, $11.95 (0pp) ISBN 978-0-06-026359-1

Wersba's first book since the Rita Formica romance trilogy returns to territory she mapped out in earlier works: two misfits find brief happiness together, then go their separate ways. Heidi falls in love with Jeffrey the first time she meets him, despite his blue eyeshadow, fur coat and blithe admission that he is gay. She feels ordinary, of only average talents, and he makes her feel special and beautiful. Jeffrey is homeless, sleeping in an abandoned building each night. By day, he performs on the streets of New York, tap-dancing his heart out and waiting for the big break that will bring him stardom. The sad truth is that he is mediocre on his best days; when an opportunity for him to move to California arises, his apparent indifference to leaving Heidi breaks her heart. This duo will rightly remind many of the pairing in Carnival in My Mind. It doesn't break new ground for Wersba, but she brings readers a welcome message in her generous view of love: it often goes awry, but is never wasted. Ages 12-up. (October)