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When Paul Wagoner walks into his high school with a loaded gun, Emily Beam is as shocked as everyone else.  She didn't know he'd take their break-up so hard, didn't know he'd end his own life, didn't know the tragedy would shatter them both.  Still reeling from it all, 17-year-old Emily is sent to Amherst, Massachusetts for a fresh start.  Her new boarding school might as well be on another planet, it's so different than what she's used to, but at least no one knows her there.  In this new world, she drifts through her classes like a ghost, writing poetry in an effort to come to terms with all that's happened to her over the past few months.

With the spirit of Emily Dickinson wafting through the town of Amherst—where the famous poet lived her entire life—it's no wonder the grieving teenager is drawn to her.  The writer's ethereal presence seems to hijack Emily Beam's brain, her presence a comfort as Emily works through her grief.  Between her obsession with the poet and her new friends in Massachusetts, a tentative hope starts to fill Emily.  Is it possible to move on after all that's happened?  Can she really start over, putting the past behind her and looking toward the future with eagerness?  Maybe.  Just maybe.

As you can probably tell, And We Stay by Jenny Hubbard is a little short on plot.  Because of that, it seems unfocused and a bit anticlimactic.  Still, its taut, haunting prose (and poetry) pulls the reader in, making us care about what happens to Emily Beam.  Although the story as a whole is kind of bleak and depressing, it ends on a triumphant, hopeful note.  Overall, then, it's a decent book, just not one that really moved or amazed me.  

(Readalikes:  Reminded me a little of Close Your Eyes, Hold Hands by Chris Bohjalian)

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(Note:  Although this review will not contain spoilers for Chasing June, it might inadvertently reveal plot surprises from its predecessor, Finding June.  As always, I recommend reading books in a series in order.)

For June Laurie, an 18-year-old actress from California, life is just about perfect.  Her recurring role on a popular t.v. crime show has helped her launch a successful acting career, she's still very much in love with her best friend/boyfriend Joseph, and they're both about to embark on a whole new adventure as freshmen at Brigham Young University (BYU).  June's never been to Utah, but as a devout Mormon, it's always been her dream to visit.  Now, she'll be living in the state, studying theater at the well-known LDS college.  As much as she'll miss her friends on Forensic Faculty, she can't wait to move on with her life.  

June knew going off to college wouldn't be easy, but she didn't expect the transition to be this hard.  Her new roommates already have their own lives and friends; Joseph is keeping his distance so he can focus on his upcoming mission; and the other theater majors aren't as welcoming as June expected them to be.  Lonely and disappointed, she finds herself pining for her old life in California.  Especially when an old friend makes a surprise appearance, reminding June that Joseph's not the only boy in the world.  She hasn't experienced this much drama since her last t.v. taping.  Caught up in all the turmoil of her strange, new life, June must decide—once and for all—who she is, what she wants and where she really belongs.

Finding June, the first book in Shannen Crane Camp's YA series about a young, LDS actress trying to find her way in the world, came to my attention last year when it was nominated for a Whitney Award.  As much as I liked the premise of the book, I cared little for its heroine, its melodrama and its bumpy prose.  It received a D from me.  Considering that, I was a little surprised to find its sequel, Chasing June, nominated for an award in this year's competition.  Hoping for a better-written novel this time around, I jumped right in—and came up empty.  My main beefs?  Plot, for one.  An annoying love triangle formed the main conflict, which turned me off right from the beginning because I couldn't understand why one guy would like a girl as self-absorbed as June, let alone two.  It would have worked much better as a subplot.  Also, June.  Ugh.  She's not developed well enough to be sympathetic or particularly likable.  Since she gets everything she wants without having to try very hard, she never grows as a character or as a person.  With no interests outside of clothes, boys and acting, she comes off as superficial and snotty.  Frankly, I can't stand her.  My biggest beef with this series, though, is that it barely explores the part of its premise I find most interesting—that of an LDS actress trying to maintain her standards while also working to build a career in the cutthroat world of Hollywood stardom.

On the bright side, Finding June is a clean, upbeat read that straddles the fence between young adult and new adult, thus appealing to older teens who want more mature drama without graphic sex, language, etc.  Although there are LDS themes in the book, it's really not preachy.  Non-LDS readers should be able to enjoy it without too much confusion.  Also, can I tell you how much I love the covers on these books?  They're adorable.

So, let's recap:  while Chasing June—like Finding June—offers a fun, uplifting, PG-rated story, it lacks too much in plot, characterization, and writing to earn more than a D from me.  Ah, well.

(Readalikes:  Finding June by Shannen Crane Camp)

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When Mallory Bradshaw's boyfriend of thirteen months cheats on her with some cyber chick he's never even met, the 16-year-old is livid.  She's so upset, she decides to swear off boys forever.  Then, she discovers an old list of goals her grandmother wrote in 1962.  The quaintness of it (run for pep club secretary; sew my own homecoming dress; host a dinner party, etc.) strikes a chord in Mallory's wounded soul.  Her grandma obviously lived in a softer, more innocent time, an era when boys didn't cyber-cheat on girls they claimed to love.  Mallory vows, right then and there, to bring back those simpler days.  Ditching her cell phone, computer, iPod and anything else that didn't exist in her grandma's teenage years, Mallory embarks on a quest to check off every item on the goal list.  So what if she can't sew on a button to save her life?  Who cares if her school hasn't had a pep club in 50 years?  Mallory's going to do everything on her grandma's list, even if it kills her.  Which it just might.

As Mallory attempts to follow in her grandma's footsteps, she finds the path back to the good ole days to be a little rockier than she imagined.  Her friends think her attempt to "go vintage" is crazy, and Mallory's starting to agree.  When she seeks inspiration from her grandma (who doesn't know about her granddaughter's attempt to step back in time), the older woman seems distant and unwilling to reminisce about the past.  Is it possible that her teenage years weren't as easy-breezy as they seem?  Undaunted, Mallory continues her journey which, really, has always been about one thing:  finding her own identity.  As she struggles to complete the list, Mallory learns some important lessons—about finishing what she's started, about her grandma and, ultimately, about herself.  

Vintage is a good way to describe this novel because it's everything you'd expect from the always upbeat, always funny Lindsey Leavitt.  With its warm, peppy tone; its quirky, relatable characters; and its pointed, but not preachy moral, Going Vintage is vintage Leavitt.  Which is what makes the book so fun.  Is it the most original story I've ever read?  Nope.  The most impactful?  Nuh uh.  Still, it's a light, enjoyable tale that's perfect for the lazy days of summer, which are coming all too soon ...

(Readalikes:  Hm, I can't think of anything.  Can you?)

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