Barry Lyga is one of my new favorite authors. His style of writing is so humorous and real that I can't help but be drawn into the character's lives. This book is no exception. The main character is a teenage stalker who ends up saving the girl he stalks life from a serial killer. He is quickly exhaulted by the community but is extremely nervous that someone will find out his secret. The book takes the reader through the rise and fall of his heroism and has a very realistic ending, not cut and dry and very open-ended. One of the best books I've read in a long while.
Library Uses
I would have students research real life people who had done bad things that turned into good things and vice versa. I also think students could make short plays or skits to perform for fellow classmates. Students could also research projects that people have undertaken to help out our soldiers serving in the military.
Reviews
Children's Literature
Kevin Ross, AKA Kross, goes from flying under the radar to hero in the blink of an eye and he is not so sure about the hero label that he has received in his hometown. Kevin has lusted after Leah Muldoon and when he saves her life, he thinks it can only get better. But Kevin has a secret and he knows that this secret would take all "hero" status away if the good people of Brookdale knew the real story. The reason he was in the "right place at the right time" was that he had been stalking Leah—for two years! As it is, he has been elevated to a higher plane where everyone knows who he is and watches what he does. Lyga has included it all: irreverence, sex, drinking, teen rebellion, with a debate on patriotism thrown in to create a very interesting problem for Kevin. Kevin's mom moved to California with his little brother after his parents divorced and Kevin lives with his father, who has a few secrets of his own. Lyga has the ability to get into a teen's mind and tell a story that is both clever and true to real life. Many teens will see themselves in this story as they read about a not so popular kid who makes it big, for a while. Reviewer: Naomi Williamson
VOYA
Kevin Ross-Kross to his friends-has a life with more ups and downs than a roller coaster. He was an average pimple-faced high schooler, living with his eccentric father and making his way through life relatively unscathed. Then he saves a girl's life, and the whole town treats him like a hero, but Kevin wonders whether the fact that he was basically stalking the girl at the time of her rescue cancels out any heroism he demonstrated. Kevin's act has earned him recognition at school, in his community, and even on a national television program. But right when he starts to feel more comfortable with the extra attention, everything comes crumbling down-not because people find out about Kevin's dark secrets but because he is caught by a photographer peeling the "Support Our Troops" magnets off the back of his car and throwing them away. Now the spotlight is back on Kevin but certainly not in a positive way. Called un-American and a traitor by the same classmates who lauded him just the week before, Kevin finds his new celebrity status is as confusing and intrusive as it was when he was called a hero. This novel proves that there are still fresh ideas and new, interesting story lines to be explored in young adult literature. Lyga revisits South Brook High School, where his previous books are set, but he takes on unchartered waters with his discussions of heroism, voyeurism, and free speech, while regular teen concerns such as bullying, cliques, friendship, and crushes maintain their relevance in the story. This book will keep readers engaged, but it will also make them think about issues big and small. It is a perfect discussion-group book and is extremely current in a unique way that is notpolitical. Reviewer: Kimberly Paone
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