Synopses & Reviews
Its Jessies sophomore year of high school. A self-professed “mathelete,” she isnt sure where she belongs. Her two best friends have transformed themselves into punks and one of them is going after her longtime crush. Her beloved older brother will soon leave for college (and in the meantime has shaved his mohawk and started dating . . . the prom princess!) . . .
Things are changing fast. Jessie needs new friends. And her quest is a hilarious tour through high-school clique-dom, with a surprising stop along the way—the Dungeons and Dragons crowd, who out-nerd everyone. Will hanging out with them make her a nerd, too? And could she really be crushing on a guy with too-short pants and too-white gym shoes?
If you go into the wild nerd yonder, can you ever come back?
Review
Praise for Into the Wild Nerd Yonder:
“The relationships and dialogue ring true; readers navigating the stratified social structures of high school will relish an ending that celebrates true friendship.”—Publishers Weekly, Starred Review
“Readers will both identify with and like Jessie and will cheer her conversion from meek to outspoken.”—Kirkus Reviews
“Reinvention is rarely so delightfully nerdy.”—Booklist
“This novel is particularly strong in showing how teen friendships evolve and sometimes die away, and how adolescents redefine themselves.”—School Library Journal
“Witty”—Horn Book Review
Praise for Julie Halpern and Get Well Soon:
A Kirkus Reviews Best Book for Teens 2007
Winner, Ken Award (National Alliance on Mental Illness)
“. . . funny, easygoing prose . . . an appealingly comic cousin of Carolyn Macklers The Earth, My Butt, and Other Big Round Things.”—Kirkus
“I completely fell in love with Anna Blooms voice—its wry, romantic, and so, so true.”—Gabrielle Zevin, author of Elsewhere
“Engaging . . . real . . . refreshing, and natural, and the descriptions of the situations are hilarious!”—TeenReads.com
"This book is hilarioius, refreshing, honest and AWESOME! — Elise, age 14
"Witty, saracastic, and drop-dead hilarious . . . this book made me laugh the most out of any book I have EVER read" —Jason, age 14
Review
“The relationships and dialogue ring true; readers navigating the stratified social structures of high school will relish an ending that celebrates true friendship.”—Publishers Weekly, Starred Review “Readers will both identify with and like Jessie and will cheer her conversion from meek to outspoken.”—Kirkus Reviews “Reinvention is rarely so delightfully nerdy.”—Booklist “This novel is particularly strong in showing how teen friendships evolve and sometimes die away, and how adolescents redefine themselves.”—School Library Journal “Witty.”—The Horn Book
Synopsis
When high school sophomore Jessie's long-term best friend transforms herself into a punk and goes after Jessie's would-be boyfriend, Jessie decides to visit "the wild nerd yonder" and seek true friends among classmates who play Dungeons and Dragons.
Synopsis
While looking for new friends, Jessies surprised to find the D&D crowd might be just what she needs.
Synopsis
Punks, Poseurs, and Pervs—Just Another Day at High SchoolJessie is so excited to start her sophomore year of high school, with her carefully planned outfits and her ample stash of school supplies. But things take an unexpected turn when everyone in her life changes. Her two best friends have gone poseur-punk and are both flirting with her longtime crush. Her beloved older brother is about to go off to college—and he shaved his Mohawk and started dating the homecoming queen. Jessie is suddenly clique-less. When she starts chatting up a girl in homeroom, shes surprised by an invite to join the Dungeons and Dragons crowd! Will hanging out with them make her a nerd? And when she sees how cute one of their members is, does it really matter?
About the Author
Julie Halpern is the author of Get Well Soon and Dont Stop Now, as well as the picture book Toby and the Snowflakes. In addition to writing, Julie is a middle-school librarian. She graduated from the University of Wisconsin in Madison, lived in Australia for six months, and created a couple of zines before she started writing books, and realized she was and always has been a writer. She is married to the artist Matthew Cordell, and they live outside Chicago with their daughter and gloriously large Siamese cat, Tobin.