cover image 13: Thirteen Stories That Capture the Agony and Ecstasy of Being Thirteen

13: Thirteen Stories That Capture the Agony and Ecstasy of Being Thirteen

, . . S&S/Atheneum, $16.95 (278pp) ISBN 978-0-689-82863-8

The authors of these 13 original entries (12 stories and one poem) have one thing in common: each understands what it is like to stand in that murky bog between childhood and adulthood. Their writings, all of which feature a 13-year-old protagonist, poignantly and often humorously capture the excitement, angst and uncertainty that mark the experience of growing up. Lori Aurelia Williams's impoverished and taunted hero Malik considers joining a reputedly violent gang because they will give him the high-status shoes he covets; and Ellen Wittlinger's heroine, Maggie, a budding writer, tries out a new identity under a pen name. Others tentatively test the waters of romance or plunge into infatuations. For example, Murphy Murphy ("Yeah, you read it right.... It's like a family curse," he says of his name), the blinded-by-love star of Bruce Coville's "What's the Worst That Could Happen?" agrees to act in a skit despite his terrible stage fright, in order to impress his beloved Tiffany; several embarrassments, one Heimlich maneuver and an accident later, he lands in the hospital with a broken leg. Howe (who previously edited The Color of Absence: 12 Stories About Loss and Hope ) orchestrates a lively assortment of voices; what readers may enjoy most, however, are the authors' comments on their own adolescences—accompanied by photos of themselves at age 13. Ages 12-up. (Oct.)