The Queen of Kentucky

October 31, 2011
Fourteen-year-old Ricky Jo has lived in the same Kentucky farming town her whole life, right next door to her best friend Luke. But she’s still the new girl, of sorts, on the first day of high school, having previously attended a small Catholic school. Renaming herself Ericka and hoping to become popular, she tries to fit in with a group of cool girls from homeroom and develops a crush on cocky fellow freshman Wolf. Ericka’s honest and insecure voice, her penchant for mishaps, and her frustration with her boyish physique will easily resonate with similarly conflicted readers. Debut novelist Whitaker paints a rich picture of life in rural Kentucky, as Ericka struggles to maintain tenuous friendships as well as her moral center. The subplot of Luke’s alcoholic and abusive father rings painfully true, as does Ericka’s ongoing crush on Wolf, who is alternately cruel and flirtatious with her, putting her self-worth through the wringer again and again. This coming-of-age romance holds few surprises, but will capture readers with its honesty and heart. Ages 12–up.

November 1, 2011
Set in small-town Kentucky, this coming-of-age story depicts the ups and downs of 14-year-old Ricki Jo Winstead as she tries on a new identity. High school is about to start, and Ricki Jo seizes the opportunity to reinvent herself. The first thing she does is ditch her "plain ol' " name, taking on the new, more sophisticated (to her ears) moniker of Ericka. Swiftly getting the lay of the high-school land, Ricki Jo decides that she wants to move with the popular girls. She tries out for cheerleading rather than band, buys hipper clothing and jettisons the real Bible for that subversive gospel according to Seventeen. Her new friends are a little faster than she's used to, and she begins a rather daring (for her) flirtation with the handsome-and-he-knows-it David Wolfenbaker. All these changes displease her neighbor and best friend, Luke Foster, a grounded guy who is struggling with the more serious issue of his father's alcoholism and abuse. In her debut, Whitaker paints a vivid, finely detailed picture of life in the sometime-hardscrabble heartland. But what draws the reader in is the chaotic precision of her characters, youngsters who are conflicted and frequently inconsistent, yet feel rounded and real. Solid, just like its setting. (Fiction. 12 & up)

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January 1, 2012

Gr 8-10-Starting public high school after years of Catholic schooling, Ricki Jo Winstead, 14, is a tobacco farmer's daughter focused on reinventing her image. She tells her best friend, Luke Foster, that she now wants to be called Ericka. She longs to be popular and find a boyfriend, and in no time she meets four beautiful classmates, the Fabulous Four, and a boy, aptly nicknamed Wolf, who becomes her instant heartthrob. Trying to act cool puts distance between herself and Luke, whose quiet steadiness and loyalty pale in comparison to Wolf's playful teasing and manly cologne. Conflict surfaces when Luke's alcoholic father gets violent toward his family, and Ericka's beloved dog, Bandit, is severely injured by a pack of roving dogs. Still unsure of her status with the Fab Four, Ericka is cheered when they give her a surprise slumber party to celebrate Bandit's homecoming. Soon one of the girls suggests that they streak through the Winsteads' house, and then they sneak out to party in the barn with boys and alcohol. Ericka is thrilled to be Wolf's date for the homecoming dance, which involves more drinking, but he disappoints her by behaving in a typically fickle manner. Only after Luke lands in the hospital for protecting his mother against his father's fists does Ericka finally recognize what he means to her, something readers will have predicted. This first novel combines credible teen characters, realistic dialogue, and enough drama to engage reluctant readers.-Susan W. Hunter, Riverside Middle School, Springfield, VT

Copyright 2012 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

October 15, 2011
Grades 7-10 One day she's Ricki Jo, helping bring in her neighbor Luke's tobacco crop. The next she's Ericka, trying to get in with the in crowd as a high-school freshman. Though she's lived in the area all her life, Ericka went to a small Catholic school so most of the kids are new to her. It takes only a short time for her to fall for Wolf, the devilishly cute boy; make friends, maybe, with some of the cooler girls; and begin to alienate her old pals like Luke. This is familar territory, but Whitaker's setting is fresh, and readers from rural areas will recognize the class differences, especially between new money and farming families. Along with teen concerns like dating, drinking, and cheating, other serious issues are raised. Luke's father is a vicious drunk, and Luke has to decide what he can or will do about it. Ericka's first-person voice is sassy and quite believable as she tries to figure out who she isand who everybody else is, too.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2011, American Library Association.)

July 1, 2012
Ricki Jo (now "Ericka") clumsily attempts to befriend the popular kids and leave her farm-girl past behind when she starts high school. She realizes that the perfect girls are struggling in their own ways and learns the true nature of friendship (and maybe more) from the boy next door. Whitaker's nuanced characters make this take on an all-too-familiar theme refreshing.

(Copyright 2012 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)