cover image My Big Nose and Other Natural Disasters

My Big Nose and Other Natural Disasters

Sydney Salter, . . HMH/Graphia, $7.99 (345pp) ISBN 978-0-15-206643-7

The tougher side of catching a boyfriend is depicted with humor and understanding in this first novel. Sharp-witted, accident-prone Jory Michaels knows she is klutzy, but she is more apt to blame her “Super Schnozz” than her clumsiness for her nonexistent love life. The summer after her junior year in high school, she hopes to decrease her “99.9 percent” chance of “dying a virgin” by saving up for a nose job and winning the heart of cute classmate Tyler. Nothing goes as planned, and the results are simultaneously painful and hilarious. Salter captures the awkwardness of adolescence while driving home a message about self-acceptance. Jory's all-too-perfect athlete brother and image-conscious mother act as effective foils to the heroine, while her friends Megan and Hannah are reminders that no one is perfect. If Jory's missteps and disasters become a little redundant, her responses to misfortune remain fresh. Ages 12–up. (Apr.)