Brenda at the Prom

by Jack Weyland

Kade Ellis has a problem. Every day he rides to early-morning seminary and high school with Brenda Sloan, the most beautiful girl he has ever seen - but she's two years older than he, and juniors just don't date freshmen. Captivated by her looks, he secretly draws portraits of her and hides them in the Monopoly box on the closet shelf. How can he convince her that at nearly fifteen, he's old enough to be taken seriously? To compound matters, Kade's father is facing tough problems of his own. As loan officer for the local bank, he is about to foreclose on several homes in the area, including Brenda's father. In addition, as president of a small Latter-day Saint branch, he is the spiritual leader for some of the farmers his bank is forcing out of business. In this thought-provoking novel, Jack Weyland tackles some timely and difficult issues about young people, their parents, and problems they all must face. Brenda At The Prom is a story readers of all ages will enjoy reading and sharing.

Genres: Lds Fiction, Lds, Young Adult, Fiction, Religion, Christian Fiction, Realistic Fiction

171 pages, Hardcover

First published August 1, 1988

About the author

Jack Weyland is the best-selling author of young-adult fiction for the Latter-day Saint market. In fact, the modern genre of Latter-day Saint-themed popular fiction is one he is largely responsible for creating with his overwhelmingly popular novel Charly. His interest in fiction began with a correspondence course in creative writing taken during a summer at BYU where he was doing research work. Since then he has published more than two dozen books, and over fifty of his short stories have been published by the LDS Church magazine The New Era.

Born in Butte, Montana, Jack received a B.S. degree in physics from Montana State University and a Ph.D. in physics from BYU. Currently he teaches physics at BYU-Idaho. He formerly taught physics at the South Dakota School of Mines and Technology.

Jack and his wife, Sheryl, are the parents of five children and have four grandchildren. His hobbies include racquetball and singing.

Reviews

[Sara · Rating 3 out of 5]

I loved this book as an early teen. Very good LDS-youth fiction.

[Shaylee M · Rating 3 out of 5]

:/

[Tamra · Rating 2 out of 5]

Seriously, soooo bad.

An extra star just for entertainment value: horrible dialogue, non-existent transitions, sentences that an editor shoulda thrown out on the first draft.

Priceless.

[Shelleen · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not one of his better ones but Weyland era it was.

[Estee Hull · Rating 5 out of 5]

I LOVED this book! I love how Jack Weyland can make these stories so enticing and that they are focused on people of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. As being a member, I love how he portrays it in his books, so far all the books that I have read by him, have been about people of my church. It makes the books more enjoyable to me and hopefully to you to!

[Jeremy · Rating 2 out of 5]

Loved this one as a kid, but now I realize just how awful the writing was. The story and everything the author is trying to point out is just so simplistic.

[D.L. · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.25 stars. A sweet read.

[Kathryn · Rating 3 out of 5]

High school is a hard time for anyone, especially the new kid with no friends. Is age really a factor in considering marriage? Well it seemed that way to Brenda, her being 2 years older than the new boy, Kade who she took to seminary every morning in Montana. There were only 3 members in the high school, those being the same people who didn't go drinking every weekend. Brenda gets discouraged with her dating prospects and lets down her guard. With the help of Kade she makes it through, though she never lets Kade believe that they are more than friends.
They help each other gain confidence in their selves. Kade to grow his talent in art and Brenda to realize that she is a beauty on the outside as well as the inside.
After trouble with the farming community, has Brenda's father selling the farm and becoming the new ski lodge manager in Colorado, Kade believes that is the last of his and Brenda's friendship or his wanted future, but a drawing from a last dance of prom brings them back together at BYU as he has won a prize and she is attending school.

[Mary L · Rating 1 out of 5]

Wow, Brenda at the Prom is trash.



Kade is literally one of the most insufferable characters ever created. He's one of those types that everyone loves, but it doesn't make sense because he's a douche who thinks he's a nice guy and "deserves" Brenda. He claims he grew up, but he actually just got swole and conformed.

The other characters are paper thin, which is a shame. I think the non-Brenda female characters were only there to decorate Kade's and the other males' lives.

Brenda's characterization was also abysmal since her life is constantly being defined in relation to males—who she is dating or how she was "raised as a son" (whatever the frick that means).

I wanted to relate to this story because I also moved to a rural, western town as a teenager and member of the Church, but Brenda at the Prom is just too sh*tty.

[Jen M · Rating 5 out of 5]

My mind was settled on tenterhooks that Kade and Brenda would be confessing that they love each other at the end of the story and their friendship would grow as what I am expecting from them. It really saddened me since I knew that Brenda caught the eyes of Kade that’s why he’s madly in love w/ her and he believes that she’s the girl who perfectly fits for him despite the gap between their age. But it turned out to be the farthest their relationship could be was just being good friends to each other but I know, somewhere inside him (Kade) was a reservoir that never ran dry.

[Kim]

I liled this story. Not only was it interesting to read, it made me really think about the difficulties of growing up and never feeling like people treated me like an adult as soon as I wanted them to. I feel like the author really tried to connect with his readers in this book to take them back into that awkward period in their childhood. Overall a great book.

[Danica is Booked · Rating 3 out of 5]

I remember reading this book and remember thinking that it was an okay read, but definitely not my favorite. Other than that I don't really rmember much about it. So I guess it was an okay book. I didn't hate it, but I wasn't overly fond of it.

[McKenna Merrill · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was one of my least favorite Weyland books I've read, and I've read a lot. If you are craving a Weyland book, this should be one on the bottom of the list. You should still read it at some time, just not your first time.

[Lynn · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this as a teenager and loved it.

[Samc · Rating 3 out of 5]

i don't want to do a review on this book right now.

[Katie · Rating 3 out of 5]

I seem to remember enjoying this book, but I can't for the life of me remember what it was about. I guess it's been awhile since I've read it...Obviously it made a great impact on me. ;-)

[Angie · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read this book as a teenager...I don't really remember it, so it must not have made a lasting impression, but I don't remember hating it, so it gets three stars.

[Cassie Miller · Rating 3 out of 5]

Pretty good book.

[Holli · Rating 4 out of 5]

my favorite of his so far!!! =)

[bballgirlval · Rating 3 out of 5]

this book is AWESOME!!!I haven't read it for a while, but i love it!!! you SHOULD read it!!!

[Andres · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really like it. It reminded me of Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm. The book seemed to me more about life and growing up.

[Annee · Rating 3 out of 5]

My mom told me to read this book and I didn't think I would enjoy but I actually did!

[Tiffany · Rating 4 out of 5]

Brenda at the Prom was a touching story. I would suggest that anyone who wants an easy read, anyone who wants to read a book fast, to read this book. It was a very cute love story.

[Katharyn · Rating 5 out of 5]

I absolutely loved this little find I found while searching through my mom's books!!

[Jen Jenson · Rating 2 out of 5]

When I read this book... I was 16.

Honestly, I don't even remember it...

I found a list of books I read in 1997, I wanted to add them onto Goodreads.

[Sarah Southerland · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars. Not my most favorite Jack Weyland book but still an entertaining read.

[Rylee]

This book was amazing in speaking the words: "Age doesn't matter!"

[Jill | jills_book_obsession · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cute and easy read. I loved all his books when I was younger.

[Lani · Rating 5 out of 5]

non-mormon school, few in HS living the standards,

[Brenda · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this book of teenage challenges in a small town.