M.E. Allen (Branded
), a writing team composed of a British mother and her then teen son (Max Allen, now a British filmmaker), offer up a mediocre novel about an unnamed guy narrator's quest for cool. In the first chapter, the 14-year-old's girlfriend breaks up with him, saying she "fanc[ies] more mature guys. You know, guys with a bit more "bish-bash-bosh" (defined as "self confidence and swagger" in the book's glossary). Contemplating "Howza guy supposed to get a mature look?," he tries a chic salon haircut, joins the school rugby team and tags along to a popular kid's party—all with disastrous results (he breaks his collarbone in his first rugby game, for example). The narrator can be clever; his internal dialogue accurately captures the anxiety of a new haircut ("The scissors are working on autopilot.... I expected this expert's whole attention and artistry would be devoted to my personal appearance"), and he blames his lack of confidence on "PPFS (Premature Parental Fatigue Syndrome)." But mostly the narrator emits a sense of superiority that readers may well find annoying, and the story line itself seems like events strung together rather than a cohesively shaped plot. While the narrator has made some small changes at the end, readers may be unclear about what lessons he's really learned. Ages 12-up. (Jan.)
