Crush: Stories by Ellen Conford

In this collection of featherweight but pleasurable romances, Conford (I Love You, I Hate You, Get Lost) composes 10 variations on a common theme: getting a date for the Valentine dance, dubbed the ""Sweetheart Stomp"" by the ""social bigwigs"" at Cutter's Forge High. Story one, a type of overture, introduces the main players: B.J. Green thinks she has no hope of snagging a beau; Linda Sherman, a budding con artist, thinks she has bamboozled nice Will Moffet (""He dropped forty IQ points whenever she was around,"" thinks a disgusted B.J.); heartthrob Diane Callahan ""uses up boys like Kleenex""; Alexei Grigorov, the Russian exchange student, conveniently forgets his English when misinterpretation proves advantageous. As in her previous works, Conford shows vitality and a keen wit. Tangled situations end up neatly tied into love knots; arrangements that seem all sewn up, however, can just as easily unravel. The more commendable characters win enviable rewards, while the connivers (namely, Linda and ""Princess Di"" Callahan) receive gratifying comeuppances. Affectionately wrought and cunningly overlapped, these selections are as inviting a choice for Valentine's Day as a candy sampler. Ages 12-up. (Jan.)