THE BLACK BOOK [Diary of a Teenage Stud]

Through his journals, Jonah Black (who's listed as the official author) narrates this engaging, if offbeat, first installment, chronicling his return to Pompano Beach, Fla., after he's booted out of his Pennsylvania boarding school. He's forced to repeat his junior year, listen to his mother, a self-appointed "sexpert" and author of the bestselling Hello Penis! Hello Vagina! host a shallow radio call-in show, and watch the best friend he's crushing on fall in love with a worthless womanizer. These often painful doses of reality are overlaid with surreal sexual fantasies, the majority of which involve the girlfriend he left behind (in one, Sophie does a striptease in a classroom). Readers willing to navigate these unannounced imaginative episodes will race through this fast-paced read to collect clues about the cause of his expulsion—and to see if Jonah's breaks from reality mean he's crazy or just creative. Regardless, he's instantly likable, and his vulnerabilities, acute description and tenuous hold on reality make for gripping and often humorous reading. Some readers may be frustrated by how many strings are left untied, even as they eagerly anticipate Jonah's next book. Ages 9-up. (Sept.)