Carter Finally Gets It

“All I think about is girls, and I don't do anything about it,” laments Carter at the beginning of this true-to-life, edgy and often hilarious debut novel. The first-person narrative nails the voice of an earnest—and hyper-active—teen starting freshman year with big aspirations and considerable anxiety. Carter's priority is finding a girlfriend, a mission he comically bungles at numerous junctures—“This isn't Queer Eye . Back off, you stalker!” he chastises himself after drowning a girl in compliments. In one telling scene, Carter attends his first high school party, confident that this will be the night he'll have sex, yet scales back his expectations dramatically as he tries to fight back tears when a senior steals his bike (“No, no, no crying! There's kissing to be done”). Carter's trials and triumphs in sports also come into play, as does his rapport with his caustic older sister and oafish friends. Crawford, an actor, stages an unexpected, affecting finale in which Carter finds confidence and fulfillment in an unlikely role: the lead in the spring musical. Teenage guys will totally get this. Ages 13–up. (Apr.)