Great Book for Teens: "The Disreputable History of Frankie Landau-Banks" by E. Lockhart

I, Frankie Landau-Banks, hereby confess that I was the sole mastermind behind the mal-doings of the Loyal Order of the Basset Hounds. I take full responsibility for the disruptions caused by the Order - including the Library Lady, the Doggies in the Window, the Night of a Thousand Dogs, the Canned Beet Rebellion, and the abduction of the Guppy.

Thus begins a fun, smart book for teens: The Disreputable History of Frankie Landau-Banks by E. Lockhart. Frankie is a teenager with divorced parents. She is attending high school at her father's alma mater, the exclusive Alabaster. Dad is committed to the old boy network of friends he made while attending the then-all male Alabaster, and wants his daughter to get the Alabaster glow.

Frankie also wants the quality education and all fringe benefits that the prep school can provide, but after seeing some of the stereotypes and cliques at work, she wants them on her terms. Thus, we enjoy seeing Frankie determine who is a solid friend and who isn't, how to handle networks of people who attempt to exclude, and what type of person she wants to be. Under the guise of a fun story about secret clubs, pranks, and teenage relationships, smart advise is dispensed to teens, particularly teenage girls. And on a lazy August afternoon, this is a fun, smart book for grown-ups, too.