Carlisles All

The Carlisle Chronicles #3

by Norma Johnston

When her father's taken hostage in the Middle East and her mother goes to Europe to keep close to the situation, Jess Carlisle, fifteen, must handle the press and take care of her brothers and sisters.

Genres: Young Adult

192 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published January 1, 1986

About the author

Norma Johnston was born in Ridgewood, New Jersey, USA, the only child of Marjorie (Pierce), a teacher and Charles Eugene Chambers Johnston, an engineer. She read voraciously--especially mysteries, to which her family was addicted. She was ducated at Ramsey public schools and Montclair State College, later studied acting at the American Theatre Wing and elsewhere, and received a teaching certificate from Montclair College. She was actress, director, designer, stylist, retailer, teacher, counselor, entrepreneur, preacher, editor, ... and in between all her other careers she was the author of more than 70 novels, mainly gothic romances for teens. She become a a full-time writer in 1973.

Johnston also wrote under the pseudonyms of Nicole St. John, Pamela Dryden, Lavinia Harris, Kate Chambers, Catherine E. Chambers, Elizabeth Bolton, and Adrian Robert.

Reviews

[Ami · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars
Carlisles All is by far the best novel in the Carlisle Chronicles series. We get away from Jess's personal angst into some real diplomatic and political intrigue.
I have to say that what really sets this series apart from a lot of the stuff I read in my youth is how multi-cultural and diverse it is. One of the main character's best friends is a black girl embracing her African heritage and several other minor characters are black, Muslim, or Middle-Eastern. Best of all, the books don't even feel like they're "trying" to be diverse. They just are.
Probably, for this reason, despite the lack of cell phones and modern technology, these novels don't come across completely out of date. Don't get me wrong, they are almost 30 years old, so they're dated for sure. But they feel somewhat relevant and current, which is a huge accomplishment in my opinion.