The Lifeboat Clique

December 14, 2015
Denver Reynolds, 16, is an outcast at school, while her former best friend, Abigail, somehow made the leap to the popular crowd. After a small earthquake, Abigail throws a party at an empty house in Malibu, and Denver crashes it. When a bigger earthquake hits, it sends a tsunami sweeping across Malibu. Abigail, Denver, and several other popular kids end up stuck in a lifeboat—bickering, freaking out, and sometimes leaning on each other. Parks (the author of Sisters of Shiloh and other novels for adults as Kathy Hepinstall) gives Denver a whip-smart, hilarious voice as she delivers sardonic commentary on popularity and their dwindling hopes of survival (“I can’t recommend apocalypse in the springtime highly enough”). Part adventure, part sly critique of high school politics, Parks’s novel only dips during flashbacks to Denver’s collapsing friendship with Abigail. It’s a sweet, moving novel about loss, friendship, and the will to both live and forgive. Ages 13–up. Agent: Mollie Glick, Foundry Literary + Media.

December 1, 2015

Gr 9 Up-After publishing adult novels as Kathy Hepinstall, Parks delivers her YA debut: a high school dramedy/survival story mash-up that succeeds in snarky voice but ultimately suffers from unevenness. Denver, a Wisconsin transplant in Los Angeles and social outcast, is at a party thrown by her ex-best friend turned popular girl, Abigail, when a huge tsunami hits and washes her out to sea. She finds herself stranded on a boat surrounded by the open water alongside Abigail and three other teens from the cool crowd. The more the group struggle to survive, the less their labels matter. Yet it seems even the most dire circumstances will not get Abigail to forgive Denver. The story alternates between the group's current situation and flashbacks to the evolution of Denver and Abigail's friendship, including the act that led to their falling out. At its core, this is a story about their friendship, with the survival plotline taking a backseat. Because of that, the flashback sequences work well, while the present-day sections plod on too long. As a whole, the book starts strong with a humorous, witty voice, setting readers up for a purposefully over-the-top dark comedy. Then it takes itself too seriously, and the narrative becomes hard to buy into. When the ending weaves in several plot points from throughout the novel, it feels shallow rather than clever. The inclusion of the offensive term sitting Indian-style is used several times. Despite the flaws, teens who feel like they don't quite fit in may enjoy Denver's criticisms of the high school hierarchy. VERDICT Readers looking for a female-focused offbeat survival and teen drama story are better off with Libba Bray's Beauty Queens (Scholastic, 2011).-Jenna Friebel, Deerfield Public Library, IL

Copyright 2015 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

January 15, 2016
The aftermath of a tsunami finds an unlikely group of teens adrift together on the Pacific in a lifeboat. Sixteen-year-old Denver is surprisingly blase about her dire plight, maintaining a snide and sarcastic narrative tone throughout. She's stuck in a lifeboat with the two girls who are at the top of the teen totem pole, Sienna and Hayley; her used-to-be best friend, Abigail; and Trevor, a surfer dude and drummer in a garage band. At least they are alive following the huge earthquake and tsunami that struck during a Malibu beach party that Denver crashed. Many of their friends are dead, and they are facing death themselves, but Denver's tone never changes from her opening line: "Trevor talked quite a bit about his man part just before he drowned." Denver's the only one with any initiative to try to solve their situation. Mostly her ideas are based on watching television, since without friends, she's had lots of time to watch. The abrasive tone, meant to be funny, is off-putting and works against suspense, even as the situation becomes increasingly dire. Due to Denver's disdainful commentary, it's hard to work up much sympathy for any of the characters, who all seem to be white. Adrift (2015), by Paul Griffin, offers more nuance and diversity to boot. Save for the most jaded readers, as it will fit their worldview perfectly. (Fiction. 12-16)

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July 1, 2016
After an unexpected tsunami hits the California coast, sixteen-year-old outcast Denver finds herself stranded at sea on a tiny boat with the cool kids, including her exbest friend, Abigail. Through flashbacks, readers learn the history of Denver and Abigail's relationship and its ultimate demise. Familiar high-school drama is elevated by the story's survival premise and dark humor, and by Denver's witty, sardonic voice.

(Copyright 2016 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)