Geek Magnet [Mass Market Paperback]

Kieran Scott (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 14, 2009

Everybody loves KJ. Especially the geeks. See, KJ Miller is super nice, smart, pretty, the stage manager of her high school's spring musical . . . and a total geek magnet. She's like the geek pied piper of Washington High, drawing every socially clueless guy in a five-mile radius. If only Cameron, the hottest guy in school, would follow her around and worship her the way her entourage of dorks do. Enter Tama Gold, queen of the popular crowd, and solution to all of KJ's problems. KJ is too nice, and the nice girl never gets the guy. Tama's ready to help KJ get cruel, ditch the dorks, and win Cameron's heart. But is KJ?

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Grade 9 Up—KJ is a girl with problems. All of the boys she likes—those who are cool and suave—don't seem to know she exists, but the geeky guys—theater types, intellectuals, nonhotties—are attracted to her. Since she is nice to them, they hang around and won't leave her alone. When she lands the coveted position as stage manager for the school production of Grease, popular girls befriend her, and, in turn, popular boys. With guidance from a new "friend," she alienates her old acquaintances and best friend in trade for a cute guy. KJ's other problems—an alcoholic father and an unstable home situation—enter into the story, adding a bit of depth to KJ's character and allowing for the final friendship showdown. Written in a chatty, chick-lit style, complete with realistic teen-speak, the book will appeal to older readers. Though there's not much sense of place (other than high school), and the secondary characters are thin, the play's the thing, and this story will appeal to readers who enjoy a funny romance and friendship novel, and will be nice filler for collections that can never have enough "pink" books.—Angela J. Reynolds, Annapolis Valley Regional Library, Bridgetown, NS, Canada
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Booklist

Junior KJ Miller is psyched to be the stage manager for her high school’s production of Grease. But issues offstage are taking center stage, including her father’s alcoholism. KJ also wonders why she attracts geeks like All Hands Glen, who brings unwanted attention to her large breasts, and dependable neighbor Fred, but remains invisible to cute jock Cameron. Being befriended by popular Tama brings her closer to Cameron, but pivotal events show her that Tama and Cameron aren’t what they seem, and she is forced to examine her feelings about who and what matters most. KJ is a lively, appealing protagonist, whose intimate narrative, told in five acts, incorporates humor, pop culture, some non-gratuitous swearing, and drama-club details, along with quintessential teen struggles with body image, popularity, and standing up for oneself. An enjoyable, touching read about self-discovery with a hopeful ending that avoids too-neat resolutions. Grades 9-12. --Shelle Rosenfeld --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 12 and up
  
• Mass Market Paperback: 320 pages
• Publisher: Speak; Reprint edition (May 14, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0142414174
• ISBN-13: 978-0142414170
• Product Dimensions: 8.1 x 5.4 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 11.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #712,253 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Thank goodness! One of the rare books for teens that ISN'T corny!!!, December 11, 2008

By 

L. nye - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Geek Magnet (Hardcover)

I love these kind of cute romance novels. However, most of them are extremely corny, and make me cringe. I'm just thankful that this one didnt! I am very excited about reading more books that Kieran Scott wrote, she is honestly a great author. I just can't believe how much i ended up liking the book! Looking at the title/cover/introduction, you probably don't expect much sophistication from this novel. However, a lot of true life stories are incorporated into this novel. It really suprised me how effortlessly Kieran Scott described complicated situations that some people go through in life. And you know how some teen books (especially teen romance books) are just SO corny? this one wasn't!

All in all, i give it 5 stars. trust me, you WILL end up liking it. I felt that i struck gold when i discovered this author, and cannot wait to read more books by her!

2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Cute, but uninspiring and predictable, April 18, 2009

By 

BookBuff9293 - See all my reviews

This review is from: Geek Magnet (Kindle Edition)

WARNING: My review has minor spoilers

This book is, as the title and cover suggest, a fun read, and it involves teen issues like dating without being your stereotypical YA novel. But, though I enjoyed it, I was left uninspired and was a little disappointed along the way.

First off, there wasn't a great sense of place in the novel--setting was not detailed and left too much to the imagination, if you ask me. I know dropping a state or city name in the book somewhere isn't necessary, but the actual look and feel of places weren't well-developed. Maybe this critique seems minor because we aren't consciously aware of the setting, but that's how setting should be. So, when descriptors are sparse or absent altogether, it's nearly glaring. Without a good sense of place, I'm not as engaged.

Secondly, characterization seemed a little off. KJ isn't your average teen, and she takes school seriously. Because of this, I expected her to be a little wiser when it came to her long-time crush, the popular Cameron Richardson. Considering what she felt for him was just a crush after all--it was infatuation, not love, and was, ironically, based on looks--I don't see how KJ could have been reasonably blind from Cameron's obvious flaws. She comes off as a law-abiding citizen, and her father is an alcoholic, yet she isn't turned-off by Cameron's underage drinking? And she was offended when Robbie called Cameron shallow, yet KJ repeatedly mentions how good-looking Cameron is and his looks are the only reason she likes him in the first place? And, even though she isn't your average teen, throughout the book she thinks Robbie will never want to socialize with her again, or is laughing at her behind her back, because she has an alcoholic father. She asks him if he thinks she's a "freak" because of it. Funnily enough, though, she doesn't hold these views with Stephanie, her best friend. Stephanie knows about her father and she hasn't run off. So why would KJ think Robbie would? This makes no sense to me. All these things just don't add up, and when they arose, I was either close to yelling at KJ to wake up and see Cameron for who he was--since it was so obvious she would sooner or later, as the book's predictable--or I was rolling my eyes at her silly belief that Robbie would turn his back on her because of her family problems.

And while I was left confused by all this, I found other characters as fleshed out as cardboard cutouts. While this kept things comical as far as the geeky characters were concerned, it left more to be desired from characters like KJ's best friend Stephanie, and KJ's mom. Oh, yeah, and KJ's brother, too--he was so minimally developed I forgot about him! And yes, these are all minor characters compared to KJ, but they're significant people in her life. Couldn't we have had more characterization other than Stephanie loves science and KJ's mom won't stand up for herself, and every now and then, gets a sliver of hope from her Al-Anon meetings and gets on her high horse? This is all we have to work with as readers. To me, Robbie's character is the only one that's fleshed out AND makes sense, though his liking Tama Gold was a little confusing, considering he was opposed to the popular crowd.

Finally, while other reviews have praised the fact this isn't a corny teen book, I have to argue it has a degree of corniness. You know how things are going to turn out, and though it involves serious issues like alcoholism, they're only subplots. The focus is on themes like popularity and dating and finding out who your real friends are, etc.--all very common themes.

And though I wanted KJ to learn to stand up for herself, all the ways in which she did defend herself were disrespectful and negative. She yelled at her father and mother and insanely went off on two geeks, and overreacted with another character, throwing a drink in his face. And though she apologizes in the end, she doesn't apologize to everyone she hurt--only the geeks. So even though you're rooting for her, once you see how she decides to respond, you hate her as much as everyone else.

If you're interested in a YA book that features a similar protagonist--one who isn't your average teen and places the more serious issues at the forefront--I suggest Beauty Shop for Rent: Fully Equipped, Inquire Within. The characters and settings are very well thought-out.

I suggest you read this book without high expectations. Maybe you want a romantic YA novel that takes predictable turns, because it's comfortingly familiar and you want things to be kept pretty light-hearted. If not, and you want a little more substance, I'd recommend the Beauty Shop for Rent.

2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Magnet for Readers, July 9, 2008

By 

Rossana Snee "Book-a-holic" (Lakewood, CA USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Geek Magnet (Hardcover)

I absolutely loved this book. Saw it by chance and decided the premise was interesting and fun enough to pick up. I was not disappointed. It was thoroughly enjoyable. Very fun, light reading, and quite entertaining. I would definitely recommend this one.