Review Detail

I stayed up late one night reading Storky: How I Lost My Nickname and Won the Girl, D. L. Garfinkle's first book. That happens more often than my husband would like (he's always going "when are you coming to bed??), but not as often as it used to. Told through Mike "Storky" Pomerantz's journal entries, the voice is refreshing and realistic.

Mike has few goals for his first year of high school. Mainly, not getting beat up or totally humiliated. But he'd also like to get the girl he's been in love with since, well, forever. Her name is Gina and unhappily for Mike, she got an automatic ticket to the A-List crowd since she was so popular in middle school. That leaves Mike out, though he at least meets a new friend named Nate to replace the old friend that moved away.
Meanwhile, if high school weren't enough to drive anyone crazy, his mother starts dating his dentist. That's enough to make a kid brush his teeth after every meal. With his mom and Dr. Berm getting along a little too well, his dad paying court to the bimbo of the week, and Gina only paying attention to him when she needs something, Mike begins to take matters into his own hands.

Namely, Sydney Holland, a 10th grader (oooooh! Older woman) who has (inexplicably to Mike) shown some interest in him. By the end of the year, things are starting to turn around for the kid formerly known as Storky.

An all-around enjoyable book, I recommend this one for both boys and girls ages 12 and up.