The Disreputable History of Frankie Landau-Banks, E. Lockhart
This is what I always want to give girls who ask me to put Twilight on hold for them. I want to tell them: Look, there are options for you! You can read about young women who are smart, resourceful, engaging, funny, and independent! Sometimes these young women get into lousy relationships, but unlike Bella, they get out of them instead of getting married! There are female protagonists who have convictions! And also brains! There are young men who aren’t controlling, abusive jerks!
But of course, none of that is going to sell this book to anyone. So let’s try again. Our heroine, Frankie Landau-Banks, is a sophomore at the exclusive boarding school from which her father and sister also graduated. Frankie’s dad was a member of a secret society at Alabaster, and Frankie’s hot new senior boyfriend is part of the same all-male club. Frankie wants in and can’t get in, due to her lack of a y-chromosome, so she decides to stage a not-so-hostile takeover. Awesomeness, wordplay, and some of the greatest school pranks ever ensue, and the straightforward, deadpan third-person narration only makes the already-funny situations funnier.
In short:Â Clever, hilarious “stealth feminism” with a highly enjoyable protagonist.Â
Read it if you like: Prep schools, feminism, fabulousness