Teen Fiction - Boys & Young Men, Teen Fiction - School, Teen Fiction - Sexuality, Teen Fiction - Romance & Friendship

My Awesome/Awful Popularity Plan

Name: My Awesome/Awful Popularity Plan
Author: Seth Rudetsky
ISBN: 9780375899973

by Seth Rudetsky

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Overview

Justin has two goals for sophomore year: to date Chuck, the hottest boy in school, and to become the king of Cool U, the table in the cafeteria where the "in" crowd sits.

Unfortunately, he has the wrong look (short, plump, Brillo-pad curls), he has the wrong interests (Broadway, chorus violin), and he has the wrong friends (Spencer, into Eastern religions, and Mary Ann, who doesn't shave her armpits). And Chuck? Well, he's not gay; he's dating Becky, a girl in chorus with whom Justin is friendly.

But Justin is determined.

In detention one day (because he saw Chuck get it first), Justin comes up with a perfect plan: to allow Becky to continue dating Chuck, whom Becky's dad hates. They will pretend that Becky is dating Justin, whom Becky's dad loves. And when Becky and Justin go out on a fake date, Chuck will meet up with them for a real date with Becky. Chuck's bound to find Justin irresistable, right? What could go wrong?

Seth Rudetsky's first novel for young adults is endearingly human, and laugh-out-loud funny, and any kid who ever aspired to Cool U will find Justin a welcome ally in the fight for popularity.

Synopsis

Justin has two goals for sophomore year: to date Chuck, the hottest boy in school, and to become the king of Cool U, the table in the cafeteria where the "in" crowd sits.

Unfortunately, he has the wrong look (short, plump, Brillo-pad curls), he has the wrong interests (Broadway, chorus, violin), and he has the wrong friends (Spencer, into Eastern religions, and Mary Ann, who doesn't shave her armpits). And Chuck? Well, he's not gay; he's dating Becky, a girl in chorus with whom Justin is friendly.

But Justin is determined.

In detention one day (because he saw Chuck get it first), Justin comes up with a perfect plan: to allow Becky to continue dating Chuck, whom Becky's dad hates. They will pretend that Becky is dating Justin, whom Becky's dad loves. And when Becky and Justin go out on a fake date, Chuck will meet up with them for a real date with Becky. Chuck's bound to find Justin irresistable, right? What could go wrong?

Seth Rudetsky's first novel for young adults is endearingly human, and laugh-out-loud funny, and any kid who ever aspired to Cool U will find Justin a welcome ally in the fight for popularity.

About the Author, Seth Rudetsky

SETH RUDETSKY is the Broadway host, seven days a week, on SiriusXM Satellite Radio. As a pianist, Seth has played for more than a dozen Broadway shows including Ragtime, Les Miz, and Phantom. He was the Artistic Producer/Music Director for the first five annual Actors Fund Fall Concerts including Dreamgirls with Audra MacDonald and Hair with Jennifer Hudson. In 2007 he made his Broadway acting debut in The Ritz and has also appeared on TV in Law And Order Criminal Intent. As an author, he penned the books The Q Guide To Broadway, now in it's third printing, and the recently published Broadway Nights which was just released as an audio book on audible.com featuring Andrea Martin, Jonathan Groff and Kristin Chenoweth. He currently writes a weekly column on Playbill.com. Check out Seth's Sassy Blog at sethrudetsky.com.

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Editorials

Publishers Weekly

Justin, the 15-year-old narrator of actor/writer Rudetsky’s (Broadway Nights) droll YA debut, wants more than anything to be popular and to land the attention of Chuck, the handsome school quarterback. His obstacles include his looks (he’s overweight), Chuck’s heterosexuality, and constant bullying by some of his classmates. When Justin learns that Chuck and his girlfriend, Becky, need to hide their relationship from Becky’s father, he sees an opportunity—pretending to date Becky and covering for the lovebirds—while also getting to spend more time with Chuck. Justin’s plan is met with skepticism by his best friend, Spencer, whose attempts to help Justin overcome his shallowness generally fail. Rudetsky avoids lettings things spiral so far out of control that they turn into slapstick, but he throws in enough misunderstandings to keep the humor and drama flowing. The bullying subplot wraps up too neatly and with too few consequences, and Justin’s real 11th-hour romance is also too easy, but Justin’s acerbic narration compensates, making this an energetic twist on the typical high school romance and hijinks novel. Ages 12–up. (Jan.)

VOYA - Caitlyn Augusta

Out of desperation (and an innate love of drama), "school loser" Justin Goldblatt develops a popularity plan. Rather than 'being himself,' as his best friend Spencer advises, Justin will reinvent himself so that he ascends to the upper echelons of high school society, winning the love of his crush, high school quarterback Chuck Jansen. Chuck is currently dating Becky, but her father does not approve, so Justin finds a way to twist their forbidden romance to his advantage. Justin starts dating Becky as a front for Becky's dates with Chuck, figuring out along the way the true characters of Chuck, Becky, and Spencer. As with all campy teen fiction, the final showdown takes place at the school dance, with Justin getting a chance to meddle to his heart's content before settling down into high school bliss. What will sell this novel to teens, gay or straight, is Justin's vivacious voice. His exuberant obsessions will drag readers along in his wake just to view the spectacle he creates. He is over-the-top and yet endearingly real. The story is entirely predictable, but how Justin arrives at his moment of revelation is entertaining in the extreme. Students who are interested in theater will find Justin's Gleek-like interest in all things Broadway another reason to root for this quirky underdog character. Talk this title up as a hilarious example of the inside story of high school popularity. Reviewer: Caitlyn Augusta

School Library Journal

Gr 7 Up—Sophomore Justin Goldblatt has simple goals for this school year: get a boyfriend, have his first kiss, and, most importantly, become popular. But these are lofty ambitions considering that the object of his affection is the handsome school quarterback who is dating the quintessential beautiful and nice girl. And then there's the fact that Justin is less popular than the weird kid who started high school at age nine. Is Justin's plan awesome or awful—or maybe a bit of both? In his young adult debut, Rudetsky has crafted a laugh-out-loud story about the ups and downs of high school. Justin is a delightfully normal kid in search of his perfect first kiss. Though the characters might be blends of the usual stereotypes (handsome jock; homophobic bully; clueless, but well-meaning parents), the novel's upbeat and sassy tone serves readers the typical teen romance from a gay perspective.—Elaine Baran Black, Georgia Public Library Service, Atlanta

Kirkus Reviews

Chubby, Broadway-obsessed gay goofball Justin Goldblatt pines after swoony, blond, blue-eyed Chuck, the douchebag quarterback of the football team who's dating the school's hottest girl, Becky. Opportunity rears its persuasive head when he learns that Becky's dad despises Chuck, and the only option for the two of them to see each other is for Justin to pretend he's Becky's new boyfriend. Of course, not all goes as planned, and their carefully laid plans fall apart: Becky crushes on Justin, and Justin loses his best friend in the shuffle. Rudetsky's first teen novel is full-on fluff. Readers will definitely identify with Justin's pursuit of his crush, but too often his character's flakey-ness and silly disposition causes him to make stupid, thoughtless decisions that could cause him to lose both his readers' respect and their interest. Stock characters, predictable plot devices and unmemorable dialogue abound. Broadway themes run amok, and theatrically inclined readers can expect plenty of references to Wicked, Phantom, Cats and more. The novel's conclusion itself unfolds like a jukebox musical--predictably canned, with lots of high drama, public unmaskings and a showstopping musical number that will leave readers wondering why they had to read so long to get where they knew there were going in the first place. Not much style, not much substance, but suitable for younger readers. (Romance. 12 & up)