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Campus Confessions #1
Xo Ronette
College Life, Self-Reliance, Fiction, Teen, Young Adult, Chapter Book, Hi-Lo, Hi-Lo Books, Hi-Lo Solutions, High-Low Books, Hi-Low Books, ELL, EL, ESL, Struggling Learner, Struggling Reader, Special Education, SPED, Newcomers, Reading, Learning, Education, Educational, Educational Books. Ronette Bradley. Good on standardized tests, a mess on her report cards. With high school over, she’s stuck cleaning hotel rooms. Her high school sweetheart, Jayson Jones, is off to renowned Houseman University, a historically black college in the Dee Cee—two sisters for every brother. Ronette’s ended up at CCC, the dismal Chicagoland Community College. Until one fateful telephone call changes everything … Ronette Bradley hasn’t exactly been an ideal student. Certainly she’s no overachiever. But she’s caught a lucky break. And she’s determined not to screw up. Part romance—part confessional—part college adventures—each ebook is approximately 28,000 words–160 pages.
- GenresRomance
158 pages, Paperback
First published September 1, 2013
4 people are currently reading
40 people want to read
About the author
Jeff Gottesfeld
86 books43 followersHONOR FLIGHT (Candlewick, March 3, 2026). So far, four starred reviews from PW, SLJ, Booklist, and Kirkus.
Too many of America's veterans have never had the means or opportunity to visit their monuments in Washington, DC. Nor did many of them, particularly from the Vietnam era, get the homecoming they deserved.
The Honor Flight program, begun by volunteers in 2005 on the most modest of scales, changed all of that. Today, the Honor Flight Network is massive, and has flown more than 300,000 vets on free trips to DC, each of them accompanied by a volunteer (and paying) Guardian.
I was a Guardian on such a flight in April, 2023. This book is about this remarkable effort, told first person in the voice of an unnamed veteran. That I could reunite for it with Matt Tavares, the illustrator of our TWENTY-ONE STEPS: GUARDING THE TOMB OF THE UNKNOWN SOLDIER (Candlewick, 2021). Well, as the last line of the book says, "It was an honor."
Too many of America's veterans have never had the means or opportunity to visit their monuments in Washington, DC. Nor did many of them, particularly from the Vietnam era, get the homecoming they deserved.
The Honor Flight program, begun by volunteers in 2005 on the most modest of scales, changed all of that. Today, the Honor Flight Network is massive, and has flown more than 300,000 vets on free trips to DC, each of them accompanied by a volunteer (and paying) Guardian.
I was a Guardian on such a flight in April, 2023. This book is about this remarkable effort, told first person in the voice of an unnamed veteran. That I could reunite for it with Matt Tavares, the illustrator of our TWENTY-ONE STEPS: GUARDING THE TOMB OF THE UNKNOWN SOLDIER (Candlewick, 2021). Well, as the last line of the book says, "It was an honor."
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
December 18, 2013
I see the appeal here, but it was predictable, inauthentic, and kind of cringey.
Full review to come.
Full review to come.
May 10, 2014
Ronnette wants to be a published poet, but her (lack of) grades prevents her from going to college. Now her boyfriend is going to university, while she remains behind, cleaning hotel rooms. Ronnette worries that she will be stuck in a dead-end job forever and that her boyfriend will dump their long distance romance for a cute, conveniently available, college co-ed.
A single phone call changes all that.
Have strings been pulled? Was Ronnette wait-listed and did a slot actually open at her boyfriend’s college? With her mother urging Ronnette to go, Ronnette heads to university. There is some confusion over housing, and Ronnette ends up assigned to a suite that she must share with Chyna, a talk-show celebrity’s rebellious daughter.
Ronnette is thrilled to be studying poetry with a famous writer she admires. She shows promise. But her personal life overwhelms her academic life and Ronnette’s mom can’t make the tuition payments. Will Ronnette drop out of school or will she fight for her dream?
Dramatic and fast-paced, the easy lexile makes this a good choice for high-low readers and a fast read for others. Teens will find Ronette appealing and will root for her success at a traditionally black college (a setting that is unusual in most teen literature).. They will also identify with the social situations depicted here. Although the characters are not well-developed, readers will want to follow up on Ronettte and Chyna’s relationship, and Ronette’s shattered romance with her high school sweetheart.
Although it is clearly teen wish-fulfillment, Ronnette’s story will find an eager audience and the novel is sure to spend more time off the shelf than on it.
A single phone call changes all that.
Have strings been pulled? Was Ronnette wait-listed and did a slot actually open at her boyfriend’s college? With her mother urging Ronnette to go, Ronnette heads to university. There is some confusion over housing, and Ronnette ends up assigned to a suite that she must share with Chyna, a talk-show celebrity’s rebellious daughter.
Ronnette is thrilled to be studying poetry with a famous writer she admires. She shows promise. But her personal life overwhelms her academic life and Ronnette’s mom can’t make the tuition payments. Will Ronnette drop out of school or will she fight for her dream?
Dramatic and fast-paced, the easy lexile makes this a good choice for high-low readers and a fast read for others. Teens will find Ronette appealing and will root for her success at a traditionally black college (a setting that is unusual in most teen literature).. They will also identify with the social situations depicted here. Although the characters are not well-developed, readers will want to follow up on Ronettte and Chyna’s relationship, and Ronette’s shattered romance with her high school sweetheart.
Although it is clearly teen wish-fulfillment, Ronnette’s story will find an eager audience and the novel is sure to spend more time off the shelf than on it.
March 8, 2016
Really fun book for its intended audience. Ronette is a very appealing character. I love the idea of a high-low series being set at a historically black college. It is a unique world and one that needed attention. Fast read, lots of drama, easy lexile. The frenemies relationship of Ronette and Chyna bodes well for the future. The author also realistically portrays the difficult female-male imbalance at many black colleges and universities, and how it skews the social structure of those schools.
January 22, 2015
This book was not as interesting as I thought it would be. The book was a bit predictable and the urban slang used in this book was a bit off. This is a book definitely intended for the younger crowd. So if you enjoy reading teen novels with predictable endings, then you will really enjoy this book.
March 4, 2016
awsome
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews