by Amy Spalding
Poppy Books
April 5, 2016
I obtained a copy of The New Guy at this year's Texas Library Association Convention. I loved listening to Amy Spalding in one of the panels that she sat on and was hoping to find that same sense of humor in her book. At some points, I did see that humor, but it was definitely a book that should have been edited to be marketed toward middle grades instead of young adult.
Jules McAlister-Morgan is a very driven senior in high school. Her goals for the year include becoming the school paper's editor and keeping the paper fantastic, and getting into Brown University for her freshman year of college. Alex Powell is a member of a former boy-band that had one big hit and then traveled off into obscurity. He enrolls as a student at Jules' high school. Girl falls for boy, boy "betrays" girl (at least in Jules' mind) and she sets off in revenge.
Jules is compared to Leslie Knope of TV's Parks and Recreation. She has a narrow focus and completely determined to get whatever she wants. She can be a good friend, but as she is so narrowly focused, she forgets her friends as her desire for revenge takes over her emotions. I tried. I really tried to like Jules, but she annoyed me. She was mean to her friends, the boy she liked, and kept so many secrets. To me (others may love her), she was not nearly as likable as Leslie Knope. She was like a Leslie Knope who didn't have her priorities straight.
Bottom Line: I would rather see this edited a bit and placed in the middle grades section. I think that age group is more suited for the story and the writing. However...I still love listening to Amy Spalding! She's fantastic!
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