Book #74: "Peeled"

 I actually didn't know what the cover of this book looked like, because I acquired it as a strip. And I was for a moment concerned that I might not be able to accurately portray the volume I own, until I looked at images and could ONLY find this one. So there's that.

That says pretty much all there is to say about this book, really; it's fine, it's Joan Bauer, it's nothing spectacular. It is about journalism, so that's good, and also apples, which I like. But on the other hand, there's really nothing to recommend it either.

Author: Joan Bauer
Potentially objectionable content: One of the major plot points is a potential haunting.

Book #73: "Hope Was Here"

All of Joan Bauer's teen books have some things in common: a female protagonist with a decided career goal; a sweetly (and PG-ly) rendered romance; and a bunch of food references. (This particular one is set in a diner, and therefore has even more.)

Most of the teen books share one other trait, and that is the absence of one of the protagonist's parents, usually her mother. In this story, Bauer doubled down on parental absence, giving her eponymous heroine an unknown father and an absentee mother, Deena. Deeming herself unfit for parenthood, she left her daughter with only three things: her sister Addie as guardian, her tips on becoming a great waitress and a truly terrible name, Tulip.

Keeping what works and abandoning what doesn't becomes a motto of sorts for Hope as she goes throughout life. And in spite of some pretty difficult hurdles, she lives up to her name...and the title.

Author: Joan Bauer
Potentially objectionable content: Some thematic elements and a crooked politician.