The Pillow Book of Lotus Lowenstein

Fifteen-year-old Brooklynite Lotus Lowenstein is obsessed with all things French. She aligns herself with Jean-Paul Sartre and Simone de Beauvoir (“Like Simone, I will never marry and never have children. I will live a life of freedom, not one of oppression by some man”), swears by French Women Don't Get Fat , and calls herself an existentialist without really grasping what it means. She and her best friend form a French club, but trouble ensues when the only other club member—a cute classmate—drives a wedge between them by expressing romantic interest in both of them. After the girls discover the truth, they spend most of the club's trip to Montreal squabbling. Adult author Schmais's (The Essential Charlotte ) YA debut is written in the form of Lotus's often whiny and superficial journal entries, placing this squarely in the realm of fluffy beach—or perhaps cafe—reading. With French words peppered throughout and frequent complaints about her parents' adversarial relationship and the general banality of life in bourgeois Park Slope, the novel feels more like a series of blog rants. Ages 12–up. (Dec.)