Cute Is a Four Letter Word

by Stella Pevsner

A young girl discovers that being popular and dating the most sought-after boy in the eighth grade isn't as fulfilling as she thought it would be.

Genres: Young Adult, Romance, Fiction

190 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1980

About the author

Stella Pevsner, who is the author of eighteen books for children from 8 to 13 years, was voted Illinois Children's Book Author of the Year 1987. Among her awards are The Golden Kite; the Carl Sandburg, the Society of Midland Authors, Arkansas State, Virginia State, and the Dorothy Canfield Fisher.

After a career in advertising and freelance writing, she turned to children's books at the request of a young son who said his favorite author "didn't write fast enough." She wrote a book to fulfill her role as "the invincible parent" and enjoyed it so much that after the book-by-request (Break a Leg!) was published she kept on writing.

Early favorites among her books are The Night the Whole Class Slept Over; Me, My Goat and My Sister's Wedding; A Smart Kid Like You; Cute is a 4-Letter Word; Sister of the Quints; I'm Emma: I'm a Quint. One of her prize-winning novels, And You Give Me a Pain, Elaine describes how a girl survives life with an out-of-bounds teenage sister and then a greater family tragedy. Teen suicide and its after-effects on the family is the subject of another awards book, How Could You Do It, Diane?

Her experiences tutoring at Literacy Chicago led to a book which depicted the life of her Chinese student, an outcast in north Viet Nam during the war. The young girl, along with other children, hid in the jungle during air raids, and finally, was forced to flee with her family. The book, called Sing for Your Father, Su Phan, is treasured by the former student, now a Chicago salon owner, as a record of more difficult times. A continued association with the Chinese family inspired Stella Pevsner to write a book about the friendship between an Asian and Caucasian girl, titled, Would My Fortune Cookie Lie?

Jon, Flora, and the Odd-Eyed Cat describes the secret meetings on summer nights between a boy recovering from rheumatic fever and the never-seen-in-daylight girl who owns a mysterious cat. A girl who feels the whole world has gone berserk is the heroine of Is Everyone Moonburned but Me?

"Although some of my books deal with serious situations in the lives of children, my underlying theme is that there is always hope and yes, humor, in day-to-day living," the author says. In her frequent speeches to school children, she urges them to do their best since, in the words of Samuel Boswell, "The future is purchased by the present." She hopes that kids who enjoy her books will be encouraged to go on reading forever.

Reviews

[Tania · Rating 4 out of 5]

Clara is determined that her last year of Junior High will not be wasted - she will propel herself into the popularity machine that she'd like to be in high school. She forms the beginning of what may be her first plan, seeing as how planning has worked so well for her best friend Angel. The more Clara succeeds, though, the less sure she is of her success. As if growing up weren't enough trouble, she finds herself mired in dealing with an unexpected house guest, Halcyon, and the neediness of the young neighbor that she babysit up until this year. This is going to be some kind of year.

A great coming of age novel, Cute is a Four-Letter Word does well in telling this story from the perspective of a junior high girl. Clara is appropriately mired in her own affairs, though she can note what is going on around her. The character is well-balanced so that she remains likeable even as she struggles through the woes of 8th grade, never wallowing enough that we get tired of her. Her supporting cast are less fleshed out by necessity, since the intent here is to make the reader really feel like they are in Clara's head. In the end, there's enough of a moral without being preachy and enough closure without becoming pat.

[Anne · Rating 4 out of 5]

there is a girl named Halcyon I think in this book. It made me learn what that meant. for some reason I LOVED this book and the girl's sweater on the cover and her holiday job at the mall.

[Sandra · Rating 2 out of 5]

Reread from childhood. Like the different characters, like Halcyon, Angel, and Clara's older sister. But basically it's a sexist, un-feminist "romance" tale from the 80s that's very much of the time. Thankfully our heroine does buck the trend she seems to be sucked into, but only barely.

[Adelaide · Rating 4 out of 5]

Halcyon is great. Love her