Far From Normal

April 10, 2020

Gr 10 Up-A story of firsts-Maddie's first real job responsibility, the first weekend home alone, and her first love. In the process, readers see Maddie transition from an ordinary high school student from Normal, IL, to a mature adult in the big city of Chicago. Maddie enjoys many freedoms exploring the city under the relaxed watch of her Aunt Emma, who is also responsible for the glamorous summer internship she lands at Velocity Marketing. There, along with the staff of other young interns who are also trying to map out their futures, Maddie has the job of cleaning up the bad-boy reputation of a young, hot, Italian soccer star, Gabriel Fortunado. It requires Maddie to use social media and get acquainted with the world of personal branding and marketing, but also competition and workplace jealousy; Aunt Emma is the company's founder, and Maddie has to prove that she is worthy of the internship. VERDICT Whether this is shelved with New Adult novels or older YAs, this is a fun, lively story about a girl and her clumsy but eventual rise to potential success and love.-Christina Pesiri, Michael F. Stokes Elementary School Library, Island Trees-Levittown, NY

Copyright 2020 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

July 15, 2020
An embarrassing run-in with a soccer star starts off Maddie's summer on the wrong foot. Seventeen-year-old Maddie McPherson has gotten the nickname CalaMaddie since things tend to go wrong when she's around. She hopes to change the odds this summer when her aunt gets her an internship at a Chicago marketing agency--and if all goes well, a good recommendation will help her get into her dream college. The internship consists of coffee runs and answering phones, until she's unexpectedly assigned to a big project to improve the reputation of 19-year-old hard-partying Italian soccer star Gabe Fortunato. This doesn't make her popular with the other interns, but Maddie's determined to prove herself. She needs Gabe to open up so that she can create original, likable social media content, and of course once he does, she can't help falling for him. But is he interested in her too, or is it all an act? With insecurities of never being good enough, both ordinary Maddie and famous Gabe feel realistic and engaging. When photos of Maddie and Gabe together make the rounds and trolls attack her appearance, the book presents an important indictment of women taking down other women. Mishaps abound and keep the pacing tight in this utterly charming tale. All main characters are presumably White. A satisfying romance that will please Sarah Dessen fans. (Romance. 12-18)

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September 1, 2020
Grades 9-12 Spending summer in Chicago with her aunt, who helped her get an internship at Velocity Marketing, Maddie is initially disappointed to discover she might spend most of her days fetching coffee and combing tabloids for mentions of athletes whose brands are managed by Velocity?that is, until a chance encounter lands her a top assignment working with Italian soccer star Gabriel Fortunato. Maddie knows this is a chance to prove herself and earn a much-needed letter of recommendation, but she soon finds herself juggling growing feelings for Gabe, a fellow intern's envy and sabotage, and the realization that not everyone around her?including Gabe and her aunt?are how they seem. Wallace's laugh-out-loud novel places readers in Maddie's first-person point of view, sharing in the uncertainties that come along with her new experiences. Maddie's fellow interns and family members keep her both grounded and guessing, and the question of Gabe's true intentions will keep pages turning into the night. A fun, clever, feel-good read.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2020, American Library Association.)