It's a bad sign when I have to judge a book by only its cover and a quick glance through the first two chapters before handing it off to a real book reviewer, but that i decided to do anyway with Emily Pohl-Weary's STRANGE TIMES AT WESTERN HIGH, because any chance a girl gets to talk up this book, she should probably take.
A little bit HARRIET THE SPY, but slightly older, and a teensy bit Nancy Drew, if Nancy were a zinester, Natalie Fuentes is a snappy but reluctant girl investigator who would far prefer to publish her zine MY VERY SECRET LIFE than deal with the latest crime.
Pick it up if you like the genre or know a kid who does; I promise you'll have a hard time passing it along. I know I am.
I ordered this through Broad Vocabulary, and got it on Tuesday. It so totally rocks.