Limos, Lattes, And My Life On The Fringe

Deidre laughed out loud. “What?” I said. “How much time did you spend on this? I didn’t put this much into my English midterm. I think you’ve got OCD or something.” “You don’t get what I’m trying to do?” I said. “I get what,” Matthew said. “I just don’t get why.” “Because the way it is now isn’t fair.”

Book: Limos, Lattes, And My Life On The Fringe by Nancy Rue, Zondervan Publishers, 2011

 

Genre: Realistic Fiction

Target Audience: Girls 16-19

Subjects: Popularity, Money, Justice, Friendships, Relationships with family

Summary: When an invisible girl gets nominated as a prom queen candidate you know something’s up. Tyler has no desire whatsoever to be a prom queen. She’s part of the Fringe, the group that’s just sort of invisible. But when she gets nominated anyway, she realizes she has a chance to fight for justice. Prom shouldn’t just be for the rich kids. It shouldn’t be a popularity contest. The more she gets into it though, the more she finds herself in the midst of scorn and criticism. Life on the fringe was a whole lot easier than this!

Notes: One interesting aspect to this book was the characters who couldn’t figure out why Tyler was so worked up about Prom. Was it really worth all the persecution she was facing? The deeper Tyler got though, the more she realized that the issues she was fighting for were a lot bigger than one night a year. It was the whole issue of whether or not someone has the right to make someone else feel bad about themselves just because they aren’t as wealthy as the other person. It’s easy to relate to Tyler’s dad and his concern that she is pouring her energy into something not worthwhile. It’s also easy to relate to Tyler and the other characters who are fighting for overall justice, for school to be a safe or secure place for everyone, not just the rich and popular. It’s also about Tyler herself more than anything. As the fourth book in the Real Life series, it focuses on a teenage girl who feels like her life is falling apart and has to turn to something bigger than herself for the strength to make it through the trial.

Recommendation Scale: 4.5/5

Reviewer: J:-)mi

Psalm 37:6 – He will make your righteousness shine like the dawn, the justice of your cause like the noonday sun.