Maggie is an alienated, reluctant honors student who stumbles into prostitution as a way to feel love and a sense of belonging. Shocking and similar to books such as Go Ask Alice and A Child Called "It", this "found journal" documents Maggie's descent into a teenage prostitution ring through her desire to befriend Ada, a glamorous classmate. Maggie's mother is a two-dimensional Asian stereotype who insists she achieve high grades and actually spurs her journaling as a suggested way to track her progress in college applications. Her pressure drives Maggie to seek friends and acceptance elsewhere, and when Ada introduces her to a former client, Maggie feels transformed by his intimate attentions. But it's the money that keeps Maggie's interest. Feeling she has little control over her life, prostitution at least allows her a measure of independence. Teens will pass the book around for the salacious details of Maggie's new profession, and some readers may inadvertently conclude that controlling parents will drive you to stand on street corners. A cautionary tale that will get teens talking.

Gr 10 Up-In this first-person diarylike novel in the tradition of Go Ask Alice , Maggie lives an ordinary life, which consists of going to school and coming home to her controlling parents. That predictable routine changes when she becomes entangled with Ada Calver. Ada has it all and is everything that Maggie isn'tgorgeous, confident, and self-assured. The teens become friends, and Maggie learns the real reason Ada seems mature and experienced: Ada is a prostitute. Maggie also gets involved with sex trafficking, and her old life starts to fall apart. She's failing school and fighting with her parents; her life has completely transformed. Can Maggie turn herself around before it's too late? Though the sympathetic protagonist is a typical high school girl, she is painted as overly na&9;ve, someone who always makes the wrong decision. Every choice she makes drives her deeper and deeper down a dark hole. There's no real lightbulb moment for Maggie, and through her diary, readers have to follow the doomed path. There's no character growth, and the book seems to offer teens a story of destruction rather than a cautionary tale. Nevertheless, this is an important, eye-opening read for young adults. VERDICT For a better look into the harsh realities of the dark world of child prostitution, recommend Nicole Maggi's The Forgetting (Sourcebooks) and E.R. Frank's Dime (S. &; S., both 2015) instead. Caitlin Wilson, Brooklyn Public Library