In With the Out Crowd [Hardcover]

Norma Howe (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 1986

During her junior year in high school, sixteen-year-old Robin begins to question her values and friendships as she finds herself being ousted from the most popular group in school.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Robin Tweedy-Boyd, 16, is a member of the in-crowd until she chooses not to drink and not to sleep with BMOC Bill. Then they reject her and she's "out." The kids she hasn't bothered with since grammar school suddenly gravitate to her. Emerson Day, who has loved Robin for years in spite of her scorning him, becomes student body president; Robin again becomes the center of an important social group. Howe encases Robin's story in numerous subplots, many of which are episodic and distracting. One exception is the touching story of Robin's trip to Venice with her zany grandmother and Alzheimer's-stricken grandfather. Peer group acceptance is a serious teenage dilemma, yet Robin is too glib and calculating to engage much empathy. The unrealistic portrayal of her fall and phoenix-like rise trivializes what could have been a poignant story.
Copyright 1986 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From School Library Journal

Grade 7-12 When drinking, sex, and personal cruelty begin to typify her crowd, Robin makes a tough decision to drop out. Doing so, the high - school junior gives up her ``most popular'' status, but finds a likeable set of new friends who share her more sincere values. Intelligent and courageous, Robin tells her story in a relaxed first-person narrative. Her eccentric family is the source of her moral balance, and in subplot, provides a setting for the dilemma of a family dealing with Alzheimer's disease. Howe tells a perceptive, entertaining story of a teen who chooses to stand apart from the in crowd and enjoys it. Carolyn Noah, Worcester Public Library, Mass.
Copyright 1987 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 12 and up
  
• Hardcover: 196 pages
• Publisher: Houghton Mifflin (Juv); 1St Edition edition (October 1986)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0395404908
• ISBN-13: 978-0395404904
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #10,133,540 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Good Book, June 18, 2001

A Kid's Review

This review is from: In With the Out Crowd (Hardcover)

Out of all Norma Howe's books, "In With the Out Crowd" is my favorite. I liked the book because the characters and the plot are very realistic and exciting. In the book, Robin realizes she doesn't fit in with her friends anymore. They have all changed for the worse. Robin reminds me of myself because my friends changed, too. This book will teach you an important lesson: there is more to life than popularity.