Plot Summary
Eveline Morales is a Mexican-American surfer girl growing up in southern California. She lives in a wealthy gated community, attends a fancy private school and is part of a group of friends who call themselves the Flojos or the lazies. They wear flip-flops as a sign of their commitment to laid back beach living. Life is going just fine with her and the rest of the Flojos (including her sharp-tongued best friend Raquel Diaz) until her former best friend moves back from Mexico City. When Evie first see her former best friend, Dee-Dee, she doesn’t even recognize her--Dee-Dee has been transformed from a quiet, bookish girl who recently lost her mother, to a heavily-made up, spoiled boy-crazy teenager. Dee-Dee and Raquel get off on the wrong note, and tension simmers among the three girls. Evie soon realizes that she needs to figure out who she is, who her true friends are, and where she wants to give her heart.
Critical Evaluation
Part of the fun of this book is that Spanish and Spanglish are threaded throughout--the competing clique to Evie's group is called Las Sangronas (the stuck-up girls), insults begin with pinche, and the music thumping through her headphones is reggaetone. The blending of languages gives the readers a good sense of Evie’s Mexican-American identity and her existence in both worlds. The other language that Serros' weaves into the novel is text-speak. Evie’s blossoming romance happens through a series of heart stopping set of text messages--it feels real and reflective of romance in the digital age. Anyone who has ever felt that texters cannot possibly speak the language of love should take a look at these passages. They might lack flowery language or the personal touch of handwriting, but the sentiments, albeit briefly stated, are all there.
Reader’s Annotation
If you like a series like the Gossip Girls but want a little Latin flavor, check this one out. It's an escapist page turner and a fun romp through a high school existence that involves surfboards, bikinis, backyard pools, romance and not much schoolwork.
Information about the Author
We learn the following about Michele Serros on the the author’s website, “Named by Newsweek as “One of the Top Young Women to Watch for in the New Century,” Michele Serros is the author of Chicana Falsa and other stories of Death, Identity and Oxnard, How to be a Chicana Role Model, Honey Blonde Chica, and her newest young adult novel, ¡Scandalosa!
A former staff writer for The George Lopez Show, Serros has written for the Los Angeles Times, Ms. Magazine, CosmoGirl, and The Washington Post and contributes satirical commentaries regularly for National Public Radio (Latino USA, Morning Edition, Weekend All Things Considered, Anthem, Along for the Ride, and The California Report) An award-winning spoken word artist, she has read her poems to stadium crowds for Lollapalooza, recorded Selected Stories from Chicana Falsa for Mercury Records, and was selected by the Poetry Society of America to have her poetry placed on MTA buses throughout Los Angeles County.
While still a student at Santa Monica City College, Michele’s first book of poetry and short stories, Chicana Falsa and other stories of Death, Identity and Oxnard, was published. After LaloPress, the original publisher, ceased business, Michele continued to sell copies from her garage while maintaining a devoted following of fans as well as a place in academia where Chicana Falsa became required reading in many U.S. high schools and universities. In 1998, Riverhead Books (Penguin/Putnam) reissued Chicana Falsa in addition to publishing Serros’ Los Angeles Times Best Seller, How to be a Chicana Role Model.
Serros' work garners a diverse fan base ranging from Flea of the Red Hot Chili Peppers (“Michele is the great Californian writer who makes me proud of my state. When I read her books I cry and laugh and cry.”) to author Sandra Cisneros (“ Serros is a young, sassy writer whose brilliant weapon is her humor.”) Originally from Oxnard, CA, Michele is currently working on a new novel, A (sorta) Unmarried Mexican.”
Genre
Realistic Fiction/ Chick Lit
Booktalking Ideas
Read aloud the description of Evie and Los Flojos or set the stage for the central problem of the novel when Evie first encounters Dee-Dee after not having seen her for years.
Reading Level/ Interest Age
Ages 14+
Challenge Issues
This novel could be challenged because of its strong language and/or representations of under-age drinking. If the book were challenged, I would turn to ALA's Strategies and Tips for Dealing with Challenges to Library Materials.
Why Included?
I wanted to include in my collection a book that was something like popular Gossip Girls series and learned about the author Michele Serros from some classmates. I liked that this novel fit the Chick Lit category but had a cultural twist.
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