The Big CrunchPete Hautman
2011; Scholastic; ISBN 978-0-545-24075-8 (hardcover)
Summary: Imagine a love story without love at first sight or swelling music or eyes meeting across a room. June and Wes meet when June moves to town. Used to being a new girl thanks to her father's consultant business, June tries to not get in too deep. Wes doesn't know what to make of the new girl he can't stop looking at. It takes a few collisions before June and Wes admit that they're perfect for each other. At least, perfect for right now. But as another move looms for June, the couple has to figure out how to keep their love from being crunched.
Pete Hautman crafts an engaging romance in his newest novel. June's reflections on another town and school offers insightful looks into teen life. Wes comes across as a teenage Everyman: smart, thoughtful, but still prone to avoidable mistakes. Their romance slowly builds, giving each character a connection they didn't know they were looking for. Yet their romance is a realistic one; the novel ends at the moment when June and Wes realize that they may not be together forever. They both know, however, that this first love will always be a part of them. Like Wendelin van Draanen's Flipped for middle-school readers, The Big Crunch is a romance that can be enjoyed by older teens of both sexes.
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