Bad Apple

by Laura Ruby

"If I really wanted to open up, I'd confess that I really am the liar everyone believes I am." High-school junior Tola Riley has green hair, a nose ring, an attitude problem, and a fondness for fairy tales, which are a great escape from real life. Everyone thinks she's crazy; everyone says so. Everyone except Mr. Mymer, her art teacher. He gets her paintings and lets her hang out in the art room during lonely lunch periods. But then rumors start flying and Tola is suddenly the center of a scandal. The whole town is judging her—even her family. When Mr. Mymer is suspended for what everyone thinks is an affair, she has no choice but to break her silence. Fairy tales won't help her this time . . . so how can she tell the truth? And, more importantly, will anyone believe her?

Genres: Young Adult, Realistic Fiction, Fiction, Contemporary, Teen, High School, Romance

248 pages, Hardcover

First published September 23, 2009

About the author

Raised in the wilds of suburban New Jersey, Laura Ruby now lives in Chicago with her family. Her short fiction for adults has appeared in various literary magazines, including Other Voices, The Florida Review, Sycamore Review and Nimrod. A collection of these stories, I'M NOT JULIA ROBERTS, was published by Warner Books in January 2007. Called "hilarious and heart-wrenching" by People and "a knowing look at the costs and rewards of remaking a family," by the Hartford-Courant, the book was also featured in Redbook, Working Mother , and USA Today among others.

Ruby is also the author of the Edgar-nominated children's mystery LILY'S GHOSTS (8/03), the children's fantasy THE WALL AND THE WING (3/06) and a sequel, THE CHAOS KING (5/07) all from Harpercollins. She writes for older teens as well, and her debut young adult novel, GOOD GIRLS (9/06), also from Harpercollins, was a Book Sense Pick for fall 2006 and an ALA Quick Pick for 2007. A new young adult novel, PLAY ME, is slated for publication in fall of 2008. Her books have sold in England, Australia, Italy, France, Germany, Denmark, Serbia and Montenegro. THE WALL AND THE WING is currently in development with Laika Studios for release as an animated feature.

Ms. Ruby has been a featured speaker at BookExpo, the National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE) annual convention, the Miami Book Festival, the Florida Association of Media Educators (FAME) convention, the Midwest Literary Festival, the International Reading Association's annual convention, and Illinois Reading Council annual conference, among other venues, and she has presented programs and workshops for both adults and children at numerous schools and libraries.

Currently, she is working on several thousand projects, drinking way too much coffee, and searching for new tunes for her iPod.

Reviews

[julieta · Rating 3 out of 5]

"Sometimes depressed people see the world differently.”
“Maybe they see it for what it really is.”
“What is it?”
“Crap.”

[Lisa Mcbroom · Rating 4 out of 5]

Tola Riley is a misunderstood artist who is obsessed with fairy tales. At age 16, she is trying to find her identity and footing in the world. She bonds with the new art teacher Mr. Mylner who understands her. After an innocent visit to a museumn with she and Mr. Mylner rumours fly. Finally through her art, Tola stands up for herself. That would be my favorite part of the book. Instead of loud name calling and postering, one can express themselves quietly and powerful through their art.

[Hilda · Rating 3 out of 5]

A good book with smooth writing and a thoughtful message.

Many people think Tola Riley as a really strange girl. A girl with too much imagination. A freakish green-haired girl. A girl who has piercing on her nose and maybe some mysterious parts on her body. The hottest news about Tola Riley is, she has affair with her art teacher, Mr. Mymer, and the teacher gets suspended because of their love thing.

People talk about Tola all the time. Classmates mock her. Enemies stalk her. Family refuses to talk about the affair issue. Reporters digging news around the neighborhood, interviewing everyone who thinks that they know the real story. Do they really know?

No one ever listens, so why bother to explain? Why not leave up to their expectation? Why not enjoy the amusement of being a bad girl?

The truth is not as glamour as it sounds. Tola does dye her hair emerald green, and the only piercing she has is on her nose. She is a talented artist who loves to paint based on her fairytales fantasy. She loves Grimm’s fairytales very much and she loves to bring Grimm’s book all the time because she wants to remind people that fairytales are grim. And Tola is never, ever has an affair with her art teacher. She’s friends with Mr. Mymer, yes, and she does accidentally meet him in the museum that day. But nothing has ever gone between them.

No one has bothered to listen anyway. Everyone quickly jump into conclusion that Tola is a confused, young girl who has been persuaded by her art teacher. Tola’s mother is furious, and she will do anything to make Mr. Mymer fired. No one will listen, because Tola is a liar.

Will Tola tell the truth? Will people believe in her? And most importantly, will her family finally listen to her and break the ice between them?

Bad Apple is a simple and quick-read book, and I enjoy reading it. Tola’s character seems very real to me with her artistic side and her obsession with fairytales. Tola is very fond of telling the fairytales when people are begging her to tell the truth. Fairytales, with the twist of fate and wicked step-mother, seem like a sort of escape for Tola. Ever since her father leaved her family, Tola always tells fairytales, so much that people call her liar.

There will be times when you start wondering: who is telling the truth, Tola or people around her? Sometimes you can’t tell whether Tola is making up fairytale to herself or she speaks honestly. I am pleased that Tola and her family are growing up throughout the story. I don’t feel quiet much attachment with this book though. I think there are not much left stories about supporting characters like June or Seven. Still, I like this book, the repeatedly mentioned of some fairytales, and the clear message of the story.

You have to figure out what you believe all for yourself.

Read other reviews in my blog! :)

Catch the Lune

[Yin Chien · Rating 4 out of 5]

A bad apple is often used to describe a troublesome person, coming from the quotation "one rotten apple spoils the whole barrel". It seems, to everyone, that Tola Riley is a bad apple. She has green hair, a great love for fairy tales and art, and is involved in a scandal with her art teacher, Mr. Mymer. Her whole world is turning upside down. Vicious rumors are spreading like wildfire through the school, and an anonymously-created website called thetruthabouttolariley.com is telling lies about her. As anyone could have predicted, no one believes what Tola claimed to be: that Mr. Mymer is innocent and she is not involved in an affair with him.

Tola is weird, but special in a different way - she is quirky and funny. I like the romance that is budding between Seven and her, and I wish that Laura had written more about this. Aside from her grandfather, her best friend June is the only one who is supporting her and keeping her sane throughout the whole "affair" thing. The bad girl in this story - Chelsea Patrick has an inclination towards hurting her ex-friend. She is crazily wicked, but that makes her character more realistic because there really are people like her.

I love the humour this book has offered. It made me laugh and kept me interested. In my opinion, Laura has done a good job on portraying every character in the story, mainly the artistic Tola, her supportive grandfather, and her always-depressed sister. She also included comments by Tola's classmates, school administrators, and family members at the end of each chapter to let us know about their different point of views on her unpleasant situation. However, the ending was a tad bit disappointing. I had wanted something more climatic, something more impressive.

In a few words, Bad Apple was a bizarre, humourous and enjoyable read. It is a story about truth, family, friendship and love. If you like reading about fairy tales with good endings, do pick this book up! :)

[Alea · Rating 4 out of 5]

Bad Apple has a perfectly weird sense of humor. For me it just worked. From Tola insisting on referring to her sister Tiffany as Madge to "Madge" being somewhat of a strange character herself. It really just worked for me, the author created a sassy, quirky, and awesome main character in Tola and a handful of other oddballs in the secondary characters.

I really liked the plot as well. Did something inappropriate happen between Tola and her art teacher or did someone lie or blow it out of proportion. What really happened? What is revealed is an intriguing web of gossip, mean girls, truth and lies, innocence and guilt. It sure gave me a lot to think about.

Another interesting thing about the book were quotes from characters after each chapter about stuff that had just been discussed in that chapter. It helped move along the story in an interesting way, how it was sort of outside of the actual story but at the same time not.

For me it's a rather detailed book with a lot of different layers! If you are looking for something bizarre and humorous Bad Apple might be a perfect fit for you!

[Valene · Rating 4 out of 5]

Tola, a 16 year old junior in high school is caught in the middle of a scandal involving her art teacher, Mr Mymer. An innocent encounter in an art museum cafeteria is painted as something so much more perverse and illicit. The story contains themes such as cyberbulling, adolescent angst, depression, blended families, divorce and parental absenteeism. It was a nice easy read that I enjoyed alot.

[Hannah · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not what I expected, but in a good way

[Arminzerella · Rating 3 out of 5]

Tola Riley loves Grimm’s fairy tales and incorporates their themes and stories into her artwork. She’s a bit of an outcast – small, strange, green-haired – and becomes more so when her sociopathic classmate Chelsea Patrick catches her having what appears to be an affair with her art teacher. The art teacher is put on probation pending an investigation, and Tola becomes the worst kind of celebrity – the one everyone points at, talks about, and feels comfortable humiliating. Even though nothing happened between them, Tola’s secret shame is how much she wanted something to have happened. When she reached out to touch Mr. Mymer’s hand in the café at the art gallery (where they met by accident), she desperately hoped that he would reciprocate, share her feelings. This is Tola Riley’s version of the truth about what happened. But it’s not just the story of the investigation and the half-truths she told; it’s also the story of her family (her parents’ divorce, her mother’s infidelity, her sister’s depression, her father’s new wife, her grandfather’s illness), her friendships, and the way she finally gets everyone to listen to her.

I loved Tola’s artwork (Laura Ruby’s descriptions of it), vision, and spirit. She found and expressed herself through her art, and it’s easy to see why she might have reached out to the one person (Mr. Mymer) who really listened to her when everything else in her life seemed to be falling apart. Chelsea Patrick, on the other hand, is a real piece of work. What do we do about the Chelsea Patricks in our lives? How you do fight back? How do you stop them? How do you fix them? For all the Grimm references, there’s no actual magic in this tale, just the story of a teenage girl who is fighting her demons and hungry for understanding.

Excerpt: “’If other people thought art was important, then it would be required to graduate. But no, I don’t have to take art. I do have to take math, which is just a waste of time because the numbers get all switched up in my brain, plus, calculators exist for a reason. I do have to take history, which is basically memorizing tariff acts till your brain bleeds. I do have to take four years of gym class with a bunch of jerks who punch me if they don’t like what I say. But art? Optional. Even though art and music and literature and all that are what make us human. Algebra doesn’t make us human. Games don’t make us human.’” (pp. 167-168)

Incidentally, Seven and the cupcakes and wanting to be a pastry chef and all of the recipes for mayonnaise? Love. Read this. K. thx. bai.

[Jennifer Wardrip · Rating 4 out of 5]

Reviewed by Tasha for TeensReadToo.com

Tola Riley is, well, unique to say the least. With her green hair, nose ring, and intense love of art, it is no wonder that she is so misunderstood by her high school peers.

There is one person though who just gets her: Mr. Mymer, her art teacher. While some people might not understand this relationship, Tola is fine with it, as she is so used to being misunderstood.

When her relationship with Mr. Mymer gets blown out of proportion though, Tola finds herself in the middle of a scandal. Even though she tries to tell everyone the truth, no one will believe her and she continues through the year as an even bigger misfit. On top of this, Tola consistently deals with multiple family problems, friend problems, and of course the day-to-day issues of just being a teenager.

I have to say that the author, Laura Ruby, has the teenage personality down to a T. Tola was very real and I had no problem envisioning her as a person. Ms. Ruby did a really good job making the reader feel connected to the characters, playing on the reader's heartstrings and making them truly connect with Tola. However, while I felt that Tola was well-developed, none of the other supporting characters were developed at all. Yes, there were a few minutes where they almost felt real, but then they seemed to fall right back into the pages.

The author did create a very interesting plot. It took a different perspective on the whole student-teacher affair, which seems to be a theme that has become very popular in YA books. I also really enjoyed how the plot looked at how one event in a family can affect each member differently. Overall, the storyline was very realistic and I could easily picture this same situation happening in many high schools.

I liked this book. The ending was absolutely fabulous, probably the best part of the book, and had me in fits of laughter. I look forward to checking out Laura Ruby's other books and I highly suggest you check out BAD APPLE when you are looking for some very realistic teen fiction.

[Margaret Carpenter · Rating 3 out of 5]

Clever writing (almost too clever sometimes), good pacing, a decent amount of conclusion for a novel that leaves you asking more questions at the last page then you were on page 3. Surprisingly good characterization for the most part, although the MC's sister Tiffany is far more interesting and well-executed than Tola is herself.
Ruby handles the slight romantic subplot with tact that delights me. And I respect that she didn't make Tola some prodigy, only a kid who likes to make art and doesn't really care what anyone thinks of it - or at least, she thinks she doesn't. Also relatable.

Ruby could have kicked herself in the knee with the glibness of her dialogue and the format of her novel, but it worked. Surprisingly, it worked. And maybe that's why I'm having trouble consolidating my thoughts enough to write this review. It's a glossy cover, for sure. A story that entertains. But it doesn't leave me with the feeling I usually have after reading a novel that "worked," whatever that means.

Perhaps I'm picky. Perhaps I'm only disappointed that YA is the future of literature like abstraction is the future of art. Perhaps I hoped that this book would deal with the nature of the heavy issues it addresses, instead of distracting the reader with the unreliability of its narrator. Because when I think back on how little critical-to-the-plot information Ruby actually conveyed, I feel dissatisfied.
In my mind, writing a book that makes your reader end up feeling dissatisfied is akin to playing a game of cards with only half the deck, or worse, replacing the missing cards with the wrong ones. There's no purpose for it. But hey, I'm not Laura Ruby.

[Reading Sarah · Rating 5 out of 5]

A sorta fairy tale.


I believe you can tell a lot about us by the stories we tell about ourselves. Tola's (whose name is from a shortened Italian Cinderella) stories are told through her art. The stories about her are told through the internet and vicious rumors spreading like wildfire through the school. No one believes her, and she's established early on as an unreliable narrator. It doesn't help that the rumors are getting her and her favorite teacher in a lot of trouble. There are so many delicate elements to this story: Tola's family, her friends--past and present, prince charming, her art, her obsession with the Bros. Grimm and her own wicked stepmother, and the teacher in question. Though I must admit that, of course, my favorite character is the blip of the School Media Specialist, Ms. Esme (who fights against censorship and gives Tola subversive materials.) The characters are so strong, the story fluid and for the most part, very well paced. The humor fits well and never seems forced. Oh, and the hero is an aspiring pastry chef, and since my own personal prince charming is currently in pastry school, I can totally appreciate a prince charming who woes through baked goods.

I saw Laura Ruby talk on a panel about Sex in YA Lit at ALA last Monday. I didn't remember her as the author of the ARC I'd just started, but when I put the two things together it totally made sense. She tackles tough topics in such an amazing and inventive way. Well played, Laura Ruby.

[Sara · Rating 1 out of 5]

I picked up this book expecting to like it, since I've enjoyed the author's previous novels, but sadly, this book wasn't even good enough to finish. I think I read about half of it (skimming a lot of that). It's supposedly about the fallout after a teacher and high school student are accused of having an affair, but really the book just dragged on and on about the girl's weird personality and family; chapters were interrupted by "comments" friends and family made about her life, all written as if they were commenting on a blog or to a newspaper, using their real names. None of the characters were likable, and it felt as if there was no real plot or point to the story; there was also no depth to the characters. I didn't even think it was well-written, which is especially disappointing because (like I said) the author has written other books that were fabulous. This one, blech.

[Sashi Kaufman · Rating 4 out of 5]

I so wish this book had a different cover because the cover makes it seem like it's going to be some smutty drama and it's so much better than that! Ruby's writing is fantastic as is her rendering of this main character going through the hell of being accused of having a relationship with a teacher. Ultimately it's a book about the sadder quieter topic of loneliness and quirkiness which was done quite well.

[Marisa Jordan · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of my favorite things about this book is all the fairytale connections. I also liked all the
artsy-ness and the different formats of writing in it. It is a great book with a deep message, and I quite enjoy reading it.

[Jyoti · Rating 4 out of 5]

It was a fast read. Kept you wondering if she really did what everyone thought she did.

[Caroline R · Rating 2 out of 5]

I found this book on the shelf of my library back in middle school and never got a chance to check it out to read past the first two chapters. I moved away and moved onto different books and then later I moved away from "teen" books altogether. However, the story stuck with me throughout the years, and ten years later, I finally stumbled across it again back in my home town and decided to fulfill my twelve year old self's wish. I should've just read it when I was twelve; I would've liked it a lot more then.

In short, I am glad I did not waste more than two days on reading this book.

The story is not revolutionary, but it is a relatively fresh spin on high school scandal and cyberbullying (or it was when the book was published back in 2009). The narration is quite juvenile and the prose is often stilted. Many times I found myself wondering if sections of the dialogue had been accidentally deleted during editing. I am glad that the romantic element of the story between Tola and Seven did not consume the finale/showdown as "teen" books often do (I rather wonder whether we even need it at all since it serves very little purpose).

However, I am not overly fond of the way that the author handles Madge/Tiffany's character and her depression. The narrator/Tola often depicts Madge in a disparaging light, citing her symptoms of depression as the reason. She is depicted as selfish and ungrateful and wanting to stay miserable for no good reason. I understand that some of this comes from a biased view coming from the character, but the author also wrote her this way as if all depressed people are unnecessarily rude, confrontational, and melodramatic. As someone who has lived with depression and anxiety my entire life, I found parts of Madge's characterization kind of insultingly and willfully obtuse. There was also some very problematic language about Seven's "brownness" sprinkled here and there. Other than the story of his nickname, it appears to be his defining feature; especially, considering that most of the other characters including Tola's nemesis are very well-developed, I am disappointed that the only significant POC is basically boiled down to his "raw umber, burnt umber, raw sienna..." skin tone.

I did enjoy the allusions to fairytales and their eventual assemblage in the "showdown" of the story. I also thought the interspersed "comments" chapters gave a more unique narrative style. These chapters are quotes taken from side characters in Tola's life from a gossip blog. They are not just convenient for breaking up the monotony of the Tola POV chapters but also to give insight into and help develop more richly the other characters within the story as well as give other perspectives on Tola's own characterization. Which is where the other main success of this story comes in. Most (significant) characters in this book is fleshed out and feels real to me--even if most of the dialogue feels trite or canned. Granted, a lot of the backstory for the characters is predictable, overdone, and force-fed to the reader; still, the motives of the characters feel genuine based on those backstories. That's about all the positive that I can say, though.

Basically, there were some shining moments here and there (the conversation Tola has with Mr. Doctor in the car followed by his admission about his first wife got me), but ultimately, I've read very similar stories that were executed much better and I wouldn't bother to re-read. For a quick, easy read about a bullied and misunderstood girl in high school, this is as good as any, but for a truly enthralling tale, I would suggest looking elsewhere.

[Laina SpareTime]

Cross-posted from my blog where there's more information on where I got my copy and links and everything.

This is a weird one. I honestly don’t know if I liked it. I found Tola really hard to connect to as a main character. I never felt like I really knew what she was feeling until she told someone in dialogue what she was feeling.

I recently read Hate List and I just had to look up when that book came out because I really thought that this came out after that, because I really thought this was trying to copy that book, but maybe it was just kind of the 2009 non-paranormal vibe. And overall, this just did not work super well for me. It hasn’t aged particularly well and it’s just kind of weird.

I like to evaluate if I’d keep a book on my shelf, and I would probably keep this right now, mostly because I think the cover is really pretty. It wouldn’t last long if I needed badly to get rid of books for some reason, though.

Representation: Tola’s love interest is Black. It is not handled particularly well. It is in fact pretty poorly handled.

Content notes: Bullying, talk of possible abuse from a teacher to a student, illness of a family member.

[Jack Reynolds · Rating 4 out of 5]

Bad Apple worked more than Bone Gap in my eyes. Tola was a great protagonist who had plenty of snark and bite. I liked how her character was handled and that we got to see a more vulnerable side as the book continued. The main plot was resolved well, and the pace worked perfectly. I'm also happy Tola's mother and sister weren't stagnant. We got to see behind the layers they built for themselves so they weren't just awful people.

Outside of the dated aspects to the story, some of the side characters didn't feel as important to the plot or weren't as developed, and I felt the romance was unneeded because the development stalled at a point. Regardless, Ruby made this story engaging, and I'd be down to read more from her in the future.

[Karjiana · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of my favorite reads so far this year! I read it in two sittings. I loved the main character (Tola). There are so many things I loved about this book that I'm likely to forget to mention something in this review:
- The author's writing style is EVERYTHING!
- The family dynamic was super interesting and made for the story/characters to feel that much more fleshed out
- I love that the sister wasn't the typical foil to Tola's loner, sarcastic, dark-humored personality, like many YA books tend to do. She was just as flawed, if not more, as Tola
- The romance between Tola and Seven was really sweet
- I loved seeing the relationship between Tola and her parents develop as the story progressed
- I loved how each chapter ended with quotes from characters involved in the chapter. My favorite quote which is the epitome of the amazing writing style/sense of humor of Laura Ruby was "'Meow' -Pib the cat'". This line officially made this book get on my list for favorites of 2017.
- Hearing about the alleged inappropriate relationship between Tola and Mr. Mymer was really interesting
- The female friendship between Tola and June was awesome. It's so refreshing to see.
- This book included technology and it wasn't essential to progressing the plot, or an evil being that needs to be defeated; but it existed, which is rare in books

As much as I loved this book, I'd be remiss to not mention its shortcomings:
- Tola's nemesis, Chelsea, had a grudge against Tola for something more than your typical high school mean girl reason; but, it wasn't explored further than the implication of what happened to her mentioned briefly in one of her of chapter quotes
- Seven's backstory was kind of thrown in there just so you can find out about his name, but it was never really addressed afterwords either
I think both of these things would've been resolved if the book was longer. Oh well.

Overall, amazing read that is probably a hidden gem due to its low price in the Kindle Store. I couldn't recommend this enough.

[Oliviaolivia · Rating 1 out of 5]

The back of this cover leads you to believe this story about a highschooler who has an affair with her teacher and they get caught. Alas this story is about other people thinking she had an affair with her teacher because she had a crush on him and touched his arm. Positives: amazing idea for a story. Negatives: terrible execution of the idea, incredibly boring, bullshit ended, misleading back cover, and completely unlikable characters.

[Tonya · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book. It was cute and definitely made me laugh. I wish there would have been some pictures of the art though. Also I think it would have been cool if the comments sections would have been actual reports/articles/blog pages. Still worth the read in my opinion.

[lina · Rating 4 out of 5]

a lot of people seem to dislike this book. either that it’s too much or wasn’t executed or that it was misleading. i think it was meant to mirror Grimm’s fairy tales. when you take that into consideration it makes more sense.

[Delaney · Rating 4 out of 5]

More serious than I expected, but I loved it! Seven is bae

[Stephanie · Rating 1 out of 5]

I felt like this story had zero plot. I didn't like it... Maybe I would have liked it better if I was in the target audience (which I wasn't).

[Lvr.irl · Rating 2 out of 5]

i remember thinking it was a OK book. I didn't hat it but I dint love it either. I should reread it.

[Elizabeth · Rating 4 out of 5]

The story that Tola Riley has to tell is instantly recognizable to any teenager who has ever tried to tell an adult the truth and not been believed.

[Shannon · Rating 4 out of 5]

this gives me the same feeling as speak does...which is to say: good

[Casey · Rating 4 out of 5]

Quick interesting little read.
I was not a big fan of the ending but I did enjoy the storyline.

[Amber · Rating 4 out of 5]

Dealing with any subject is difficult but especially one as controversial as a teacher and student relationship. For this reason alone, I was both interested and repulsed by Bad Apple. Then I opened the book and meet a cast of very real and unique characters and a narrator as confused and interesting as she was real. Bad Apple was a treat from page one to the last.

Tola wants someone to understand her. Living with an absentee father whom she takes after, a mentally unstable sister always on the verge of a break down and a mother who doesn't trust her, she feels like an outcast. So when her art teacher encourages her to express herself through painting, she finds an outlet from the loneliness she feels. Tola wants to stand out and in high school that means that she's put herself as the target for ridicule with her green hair and her willingness to experiment. She's learned to distance herself from what everyone says which makes for an interesting character. But through her tough facade, you can really feel how much all of this affects her. So naturally she gravitates towards her teacher. The problem is, though she has a tiny crush, the way most girls do with some authority figure in their youth whom they look up to, and she does try to hold his hand (which he kindly tells her is inappropriate and is willing to leave it at that) nothing every really happened. But no one will believe her. No matter how many times she states it. I loved her as a main character. She had an interesting viewpoint and was witty and charming. Everything a main character should be!

The cast of supporting characters were just as good. Her best friend June is this fun loyal friend whose mother makes her take a crap load of seminars and extra curricular activities to get into a "good college"? so she isn't around much but when she is, she's as bluntly honest as Tola and has this magical cell that calls people on its own. Tiffany (though Tola calls her Madge because she claims Tiffany doesn't suit her) is this straight A student who has a mental break down and is now obsessed with war movies and hyperventilating in a brown paper bag. Then there is the love interest Seven who is witty and charming. They all blend into this great portrait of amazing colors that bring the pages to life.

The plot was instantly interesting. I wanted to know what happened to make people believe she and her teacher were having an affair and why no one would believe her when she said they didn't. It was a terrifying look at how your life becomes forfeit to the people around you when people gossip and also how cyber bullying can affect you. I felt powerless with Tola as the lies kept growing and there was nothing she could do stop them. Ruby did an amazing job of not sugarcoating these issues. No one was completely innocent because life is messy.

What was most impressive was the ambiguity of the story. The ending allows you to interrupt Tola's life whichever why you want to. The author utilizes comments after every chapter that have people that know Tola quote about her. It's really awesome because you get to see things from Tola's point of view and then a quick snippet into the mind of that other character. It's also useful to remind you how different people see the same situations and it develops characters in an entirely new way. An example of the first point is when Tola nicknames her step dad Mr. Doctor. She never calls him by his name but he is in one of the comments after a chapter and we get to read his name and how he sees something. The second point is illustrated the best through Chelsea's character. We find out early on that Chelsea is this awful person and her comments work not only illustrate that point but they also tell you why she is the way she is. It's ingenious!

Libba Bray's quote on the back of this novel is "...Ruby's so-good novel comes out swinging" and it sums this one up perfectly. Tola's a modern day kick butt heroine who uses her brains to get things done. I was enchanted by this novel and if the Wicked Witch held out this apple, I'd definitely pull a Snow White and take a big ol' bite. It's that good!

[Joey Gremillion · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very well written. Goes a little overboard on the teen angst, though. I hope she does a follow-up to see what happens next with Tola.