Metamorphosis: Junior Year

He's a young artist obsessed with myths. But can he fix his own fate? Acclaimed author Betsy Franco and her talented son collaborate on a hip YA novel of "epic" proportions.

Life. Love. Death. Identity. Ovid's got a lot on his mind, and he pours it all -- as confessions, observations, narrative poems, and drawings -- into the pages of a notebook. Inspired by his namesake, he wryly records his classmates' dramas as modern-day Roman mythology. There's Sophie and Caleb, the Psyche and Cupid of cyber-couples; poetic Paula, who pursues filmmaker Franny like Apollo chasing Daphne; and graphic novelist Duwayne, a Proserpina shuttling between divorced parents. Meanwhile, Ovid hides his own Olympian struggles: his meth addict sister Thena has run off, leaving him with a suffocating home life and a disturbing secret. In her striking YA debut, Betsy Franco introduces an expressive soul with a heartbreakingly authentic voice. Fantastical ink illustrations by her son Tom Franco enhance the intimate tone, delving deep into one intriguing teen's imagination.

Binding Type: Hardcover
Publisher: Candlewick Press (MA)
Published: 10/13/2009
ISBN: 9780763637651
Pages: 128
Weight: 0.61lbs
Size: 8.52h x 5.56w x 0.64d

Review Citations: Booklist 09/01/2009 pg. 84
Kirkus Review - Children 09/15/2009
School Library Journal 12/01/2009 pg. 118
Voice of Youth Advocates 02/01/2010 - Recommended - Better Than Most
Bulletin of Ctr for Child Bks 04/01/2010
Hornbook Guide to Children 01/01/2010 pg. 95 - Recommended, Satisfactory
Foreword 12/17/2009

Accelerated Reader Quiz #/Name: 134387 / Metamorphosis: Junior Year
Reading Level: 4.6 / Interest Level: Upper Grade / Point Value: 2