Here Lies Bridget

Bridget Duke, father is a famous sportscaster, and Bridget herself is both entitled and deeply insecure. "[H]is fame made me cool by association. I didn't need to be head cheerleader (which is good because I never could be).... I was a local princess." She disrespects her family and friends, especially her caring stepmother, and terrorizes her teachers and classmates. Bridget has crossed the line so many times that the next step is expulsion, which she barely dodges. When a new girl draws the attention of Bridget's ex (and the rest of the school), it's more than Bridget can take. In a rage, Bridget accidentally crashes her car and finds herself in limbo, with the five people she has hurt the most deciding her fate. The structure of Harbison's debut novel (which calls to mind A Christmas Carol, as Bridget is given the chance to see herself from the perspectives of others) results in some tedious repetition. But secondary characters are convincingly rounded, and the discoveries that Bridget makes along her path to redemption expose the true emotional impetus behind her behavior. Ages 13%E2%80%9318. (Feb.)