The File on Angelyn Stark

Fifteen-year-old Angelyn is no stranger to trouble: she and her friends smoke daily in the girls’ bathroom, and she’s caught with her boyfriend in the back of his pickup truck during lunch. She has a painful past, too: when she was 12, Angelyn’s elderly neighbor reported that the girl was being sexually abused by her stepfather; although Angelyn denied it, the accusation strained her family and caused her formerly beloved neighbor to move away. When Angelyn begins a complicated relationship with a teacher struggling with his own family issues, he tells her mother that Angelyn is confused (“Friend. Father. Lover. She’s got the lines blurred”), which makes Angelyn’s mother finally ask her daughter what really happened three years ago. Angelyn is a believably complex character who fights, swears, and acts impulsively, but is still easy to get behind. Atkins (Alt Ed) makes some slightly heavy-handed choices, including Angelyn’s connection with a dog that’s been abandoned and her eventual visit to see her estranged neighbor—but Angelyn’s realistic struggles with her mother add depth to this powerful, mature story. Ages 14–up. (Nov.)