{"product_id":"a-bad-boy-can-be-good-for-a-girl-isbn-9780553495096","title":"A Bad Boy Can Be Good for a Girl","description":"Josie, Nicolette, and Aviva all get mixed up with a senior boy–a cool, slick, sexy boy who can talk them into doing almost anything he wants. In a blur of high school hormones and personal doubt, each girl struggles with how much to give up and what ultimately to keep for herself. How do girls handle themselves? How much can a boy get away with? And in the end, who comes out \u003cbr\u003eon top? A bad boy may always be a bad boy. But this bad boy is about to meet three girls who won’t back down.“Three girls succumb to the charms of one sexy high school senior and emerge wiser for the experience in this energetic novel in verse. . . The free verse gives the stories a breathless, natural flow and changes tone with each narrator. The language is realistic and frank, and, while not graphic, it is filled with descriptions of the teens and their sexuality. This is not a book that will sit quietly on any shelf; it will be passed from girl to girl to girl.”–\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eSchool Library Journal,\u003c\/i\u003e Starred Review\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“This amazing first novel is one of the most honest treatments of teenage sexuality to be found in YA fiction. . . . This will be much talked about, and every reader who has been swept away in a love affair will recognize its truth.”–\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eKliatt\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e“The kind of tell-it-like-it-is wisdom that comes from your best girlfriends. It’s irresistible.”–\u003cb\u003eLibba Bray, \u003ci\u003eNew York Times\u003c\/i\u003e bestselling author of \u003ci\u003eA Great and Terrible Beauty\u003c\/i\u003e and \u003ci\u003eRebel Angels\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003ci\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e“Candid free-verse novel . . . electrically charged.”–\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eThe\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003ci\u003e \u003cb\u003eHorn Book Magazine\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e“Stone's novel in verse, more poetic prose than poetry, packs a steamy, emotional wallop. . . . The lessons learned here, however, are important.”–\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eBooklist \u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e“It's fantastic–hip, edgy, and addicting. Sometimes funny, sometimes heartbreaking, always real. Sure to be the new \u003ci\u003eForever\u003c\/i\u003e.”–\u003cb\u003eCynthia Leitich Smith, award-winning author\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e“Every high-school age girl in the world needs to read this book, before they meet the proverbial bad boy.”–\u003cb\u003eTeens Read Too!\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“3 smart girls + 1 slick senior boy = 1 sharply observed novel about sex, sisterhood, and self-respect.”–\u003cb\u003eReading Rants!\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eA \u003cb\u003eBill's Best Book\u003c\/b\u003e chosen by \u003cb\u003eALAN–the Assembly on Literature for Adolescents of the National Council of Teachers of English\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“The next \u003ci\u003eVagina Monologues\u003c\/i\u003e, . . . for the teen crowd.”–\u003cb\u003eDonna Freitas, Belief.net columnist and author of \u003ci\u003eBecoming a Goddess of Inner Poise\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Stone's intimate and honest work accurately depicts both the agony and ecstasy of teenage relationships from the inside out.”–\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eVOYA,\u003c\/i\u003e 4Q, 4P\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cb\u003eJosie\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eFor the Record\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eI'm not stuck up.\u003cbr\u003eI'm confident.\u003cbr\u003eThere's a big difference.\u003cbr\u003eIf I was stuck up\u003cbr\u003eI'd be one of those\u003cbr\u003e\"Oh look at me, I'm so pretty\"\u003cbr\u003egirls\u003cbr\u003einstead of just appreciating the fact that\u003cbr\u003emy cinnamon skin looks good year-round\u003cbr\u003eand I can hop in the shower after soccer or lacrosse,\u003cbr\u003ethrow on a clean sweatshirt,\u003cbr\u003esweep on some mascara,\u003cbr\u003elet my hair loose from its pony,\u003cbr\u003eand give any girl\u003cbr\u003ea serious run for her money.\u003cbr\u003eAnd while I totally deserve my spot in Honors English\u003cbr\u003eI'm happy to take my proper place\u003cbr\u003ein Algebra I, suffering alongside the rest of the\u003cbr\u003emediocre math heads.\u003cbr\u003eSo,\u003cbr\u003eas far as high school boys go,\u003cbr\u003eI'm not so floundering in self-esteem issues\u003cbr\u003ethat I need\u003cbr\u003esomeone's arm to hang on or\u003cbr\u003esomeone's jersey number to cheer for\u003cbr\u003eto be a legitimate person,\u003cbr\u003elike some people I know.\u003cbr\u003eMan, to listen to Kim and Caroline\u003cbr\u003echatter away all summer\u003cbr\u003eyou'd think we've been waiting our whole pathetic lives\u003cbr\u003ejust to graduate middle school\u003cbr\u003eand get to Point Beach High\u003cbr\u003eso we could date high school boys.\u003cbr\u003eAs if high school boys\u003cbr\u003ehold some kind of magical key\u003cbr\u003eto who we\u003cbr\u003eall\u003cbr\u003ereally\u003cbr\u003eare.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThe Whole Truth\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eAll that stuff I just said is absolutely\u003cbr\u003eswear-to-God true,\u003cbr\u003ebut the rest of the truth\u003cbr\u003ethe whole truth\u003cbr\u003eis\u003cbr\u003elately\u003cbr\u003eI don't have as tight a grip\u003cbr\u003eon my confidence\u003cbr\u003eas usual.\u003cbr\u003eI mean, this is high school.\u003cbr\u003eSure, I was pretty popular in middle school,\u003cbr\u003ebut you never know\u003cbr\u003ehow these things are going to\u003cbr\u003eturn out.\u003cbr\u003eWhat if\u003cbr\u003ewhat Kim and Caroline call\u003cbr\u003emy natural look\u003cbr\u003eis considered totally lame in high school?\u003cbr\u003eWhat if\u003cbr\u003ewanting to read\u003cbr\u003eduring lunch\u003cbr\u003emakes me a\u003cbr\u003etotal geek?\u003cbr\u003eWhat if\u003cbr\u003eI don't\u003cbr\u003efit in\u003cbr\u003eat\u003cbr\u003eall?\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eJigsaw\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eIt's funny how one night can change\u003cbr\u003ethe way you look at certain things.\u003cbr\u003eI mean, I believe 100 percent\u003cbr\u003ethat high school boys don't hold any magical key \u003cbr\u003eor anything\u003cbr\u003ebut that's not the same as saying they're all bad.\u003cbr\u003eSome of them aren't so bad.\u003cbr\u003eLike, maybe,\u003cbr\u003ethis\u003cbr\u003eone.\u003cbr\u003eI saw him across the gym before he saw me.\u003cbr\u003eHe was scoping things out at the Fall Fling,\u003cbr\u003elooking for that one lucky freshman\u003cbr\u003eto win the prize\u003cbr\u003eof dancing\u003cbr\u003ewith the studly senior.\u003cbr\u003eI think he picked me\u003cbr\u003ebecause I looked\u003cbr\u003eright at him\u003cbr\u003eas if I couldn't\u003cbr\u003ecare less.\u003cbr\u003eI couldn't care\u003cbr\u003emore.\u003cbr\u003eMy heart was pounding,\u003cbr\u003epalms sweaty.\u003cbr\u003eHit me like a surprise party you cross-your-heart\u003cbr\u003ehad no idea\u003cbr\u003eanyone was throwing you.\u003cbr\u003eNow, I have never understood all that\u003cbr\u003ehe's-my-other-half\u003cbr\u003esoul mate stuff\u003cbr\u003eor when people sometimes talk about\u003cbr\u003ehaving an empty space inside\u003cbr\u003eor that they're missing pieces or something.\u003cbr\u003eBut then\u003cbr\u003ehe walked over\u003cbr\u003eand fit himself\u003cbr\u003eright into my puzzle.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eFirst (Real) Date: Part One\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eI think Mom is a little bit worried\u003cbr\u003ethe first guy I'm dating\u003cbr\u003eis a senior.\u003cbr\u003eShe should know me\u003cbr\u003ebetter than that.\u003cbr\u003eI never do\u003cbr\u003eanything\u003cbr\u003eI don't want to do.\u003cbr\u003eThat's not going to change.\u003cbr\u003eI mean, when everyone thought\u003cbr\u003eit was so cool\u003cbr\u003eto sit on the seawall\u003cbr\u003eand puff through a pack of Marlboro Lights,\u003cbr\u003eI had a blast sitting there laughing,\u003cbr\u003etelling them how truly stupid and\u003cbr\u003euncool\u003cbr\u003ethey really were, actually,\u003cbr\u003ecoughing and sputtering and wanting to puke,\u003cbr\u003eyeah, real sexy,\u003cbr\u003edopes.\u003cbr\u003eGive me some credit.\u003cbr\u003eI never do\u003cbr\u003eanything\u003cbr\u003eI don't want to do.\u003cbr\u003ePeriod.\u003cbr\u003eHe picks me up in his brand-new\u003cbr\u003eMazda Miata.\u003cbr\u003eI hate to admit it,\u003cbr\u003ebut he kind of cracked my\u003cbr\u003ecool-as-a-cucumber exterior\u003cbr\u003eI tried to pull off\u003cbr\u003eat the dance\u003cbr\u003e(even though I'm hoping\u003cbr\u003ehe didn't notice I talked way too fast)\u003cbr\u003ebut now\u003cbr\u003eall he's talking about\u003cbr\u003eis how many horsepowers his stupid car has\u003cbr\u003eand the torque\u003cbr\u003eand how he almost picked cherry red\u003cbr\u003ebut he's so stoked that they had this\u003cbr\u003esweet ocean color\u003cbr\u003ecome in at the last minute\u003cbr\u003eand I'm starting to think\u003cbr\u003emaybe\u003cbr\u003eI made\u003cbr\u003ea\u003cbr\u003ebig\u003cbr\u003emistake,\u003cbr\u003ebut I just smile and nod,\u003cbr\u003elike the idiotic bobblehead\u003cbr\u003eplanted\u003cbr\u003ein the middle of his dashboard,\u003cbr\u003epretending\u003cbr\u003ethis is the most\u003cbr\u003einteresting conversation ever.\u003cbr\u003eMan, I hope he doesn't keep this up too long.\u003cbr\u003eWe pull in to Smiles.\u003cbr\u003eThe parking lot is\u003cbr\u003ealive,\u003cbr\u003etoo many radio stations\u003cbr\u003eblaring\u003cbr\u003ekids making out in cars\u003cbr\u003esitting on hoods\u003cbr\u003eeating hot dogs\u003cbr\u003ehigh-fiving\u003cbr\u003esmoking various things\u003cbr\u003edrinking various things\u003cbr\u003etalking too loud\u003cbr\u003eabout\u003cbr\u003enothing.\u003cbr\u003eReal fun.\u003cbr\u003eInside\u003cbr\u003ethe scene isn't all that different,\u003cbr\u003eexcept\u003cbr\u003eit's another kind of dark\u003cbr\u003epunctuated\u003cbr\u003eby the bright lights\u003cbr\u003eof too many pulsing\u003cbr\u003evideo games\u003cbr\u003ejammed up\u003cbr\u003eagainst each other.\u003cbr\u003eWe walk over to a big bunch of seniors\u003cbr\u003eby the batting cages\u003cbr\u003ehe drapes his arm around me\u003cbr\u003ereal possessive,\u003cbr\u003ewhich should have immediately brought out my\u003cbr\u003eI-can-take-care-of-myself attitude,\u003cbr\u003ebut instead stirs this\u003cbr\u003eway-foreign tingly\u003cbr\u003e\"Oh my God, he really likes me\" rush.\u003cbr\u003e(Lame! Did I just actually think that?)\u003cbr\u003e\"Dude!\"\u003cbr\u003e\"Who's the babe? Freshmeat?\" one of the jocks says,\u003cbr\u003eright in front of my face.\u003cbr\u003e\"Get it? Freshmen, freshmeat?\"\u003cbr\u003eHe's laughing hysterically,\u003cbr\u003elike this is the most hilarious thing\u003cbr\u003eanyone\u003cbr\u003ehas ever\u003cbr\u003eheard.\u003cbr\u003e\"Yeah, got it.\u003cbr\u003eGuys, this is Josie.\"\u003cbr\u003eA round of Hi's, How's It Goin's, and What's Up's\u003cbr\u003eare tossed in my general direction.\u003cbr\u003e\"Hi.\"\u003cbr\u003eI never thought this scene\u003cbr\u003ewould interest me\u003cbr\u003ebut actually,\u003cbr\u003eI feel really,\u003cbr\u003eI don't know,\u003cbr\u003eincluded, I guess,\u003cbr\u003ewith his arm wrapped around me\u003cbr\u003epulling me into a group--\u003cbr\u003eand not just any group:\u003cbr\u003ethe coolest, most popular group of seniors,\u003cbr\u003eeven though the guys are fairly juvenile.\u003cbr\u003e\"Hey, we're all heading over to Lindsey's in a while,\"\u003cbr\u003eone of the boys says.\u003cbr\u003e\"Time to party!\"\u003cbr\u003e\"Okay. We'll hit that, too. All right, Jos?\"\u003cbr\u003e\"Okay. Sure.\"\u003cbr\u003eAlthough I'm not at all sure\u003cbr\u003ebecause my Mom would\u003cbr\u003efreak\u003cbr\u003eif she knew I was going to a\u003cbr\u003esenior party.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eFirst (Real) Date: Part Two\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eWe hang out at Smiles for a while,\u003cbr\u003eeat some truly nasty pizza,\u003cbr\u003ethen head over to Lindsey's.\u003cbr\u003eOn the drive over\u003cbr\u003ehe rests his hand on my thigh,\u003cbr\u003e\"Are you having a good time?\"\u003cbr\u003e\"Yes.\"\u003cbr\u003e\"Good, I'm glad. I want you to have fun.\"\u003cbr\u003eHis hand\u003cbr\u003eis still\u003cbr\u003eon my\u003cbr\u003ethigh.\u003cbr\u003eHe's going on and on about something,\u003cbr\u003ehis car again, I think,\u003cbr\u003ebut I can't concentrate\u003cbr\u003ewith his fingers moving back and forth like that\u003cbr\u003eand even though he's acting real\u003cbr\u003einnocent,\u003cbr\u003elike he's got no goal or anything,\u003cbr\u003ethe heat from his fingers is\u003cbr\u003esearing through to my skin\u003cbr\u003elike one of those iron-on transfers.\u003cbr\u003eI could almost bet\u003cbr\u003ewhen I look later\u003cbr\u003ehis handprint\u003cbr\u003ewill have been permanently\u003cbr\u003eimprinted\u003cbr\u003eon my leg.\u003cbr\u003eThen he raises the stakes.\u003cbr\u003eHe moves his hand onto mine\u003cbr\u003epicks it up\u003cbr\u003eand puts it on\u003cbr\u003ehis thigh.\u003cbr\u003eHe takes his eyes off the road\u003cbr\u003efor a second\u003cbr\u003elooks at me\u003cbr\u003eand smiles.\u003cbr\u003eLike the big bad wolf.\u003cbr\u003eIf I was in a comic strip,\u003cbr\u003ethere'd be a bubble coming out of my head\u003cbr\u003ewith the word \"Gulp\" in it.","brand":"Wendy Lamb Books","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":46299740012773,"sku":"NP9780553495096","price":13.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/1842\/7735\/files\/9780553495096_ef6efb42-4583-4490-8d4c-d2f5ee305e05.jpg?v=1767720284","url":"https:\/\/k12savings.com\/products\/a-bad-boy-can-be-good-for-a-girl-isbn-9780553495096","provider":"K12savings","version":"1.0","type":"link"}