about the book
For years copies of the anonymous lists have appeared the last week in September plastered all over the Mount Washington High School. Each year, it is just eight names…someone’s idea of the prettiest and ugliest girls in the freshman, sophomore, junior, and senior class. What would you do if your name was on the list?
Muscular freshman swimmer Danielle is labeled “Dan the Man,” while her pretty sister, Abby, faces grounding during Homecoming due to her failing grades.
Sure it is a mistake, ugly on the inside Candace is about to get her comeuppance, while Lauren, a home-schooled newcomer, is bowled over by the prettiest title and popularity.
Labeled as the ugliest junior, rebellious Sarah refuses to bathe or change her clothes while the prettiest junior, Bridget, reverts back under the pressure into anorexia.
And senior Jennifer, after being named ugliest four years running, suddenly finds herself popular, causing her ex-childhood friend, a now unapproachable prettiest homecoming queen, Margo, to question their relationship.
Humiliation. Self-esteem. Doubt. Triumph. The list evokes very surprising consequences. After all, beauty and ugliness are not always skin deep.
about the author
Siobhan Vivian was born in New York City and grew up in Rutherford, New Jersey, where she often found herself in trouble—for big things such as bringing a stray dog to school in a stolen shopping cart—and little things like talking too much, passing notes, not doing her homework, and sneaking out.
But all these experiences came in handy once she found her passion—writing for young adult readers!
But knowing you have a passion for writing and actually getting to do that writing is often not an easy road to follow. First Siobhan had to get the proper schooling, so she earned a degree in writing for film and television at The University of the Arts. And then she went on to earn a master’s in writing children’s literature from The New School University.
Siobhan needed experiences in her field, so she worked as an editor for Alloy Entertainment and a scriptwriter for The Disney Channel. She took the story she had written for her master’s thesis and worked hard on it. She found an agent, and in a short time, her manuscript went to auction and a book deal was signed. All her hard work paid off…although she will be the first to tell you that writing the second book is even harder than the first!
When not writing, Siobhan is teaching Writing Youth Literature at the University of Pittsburgh and typing actual letters to her friends on her vintage typewriter!
Sources:
Author website
Author interview : Writer’s Digest
Author video interview
Book trailer: The List
Also by Siobhan Vivian:
Not That Kind of Girl. Push. 2010.
Same Difference. Push. 2009.
A Little Friendly Advice. Push. 2008.
read more!
Not That Kind of Girl by Siobhan Vivian
Natalie, high school senior and student body president, is fully in control and is all for female empowerment. Throughout her school years, she has always avoided trouble, especially the disgusting male species. What happens when her best friend suddenly becomes secretive; a freshman girl starts questioning the good girl/bad girl thing; and Natalie finds herself falling for a football jock?
Red by Alison Cherry
In Scarletville, the only thing that matters in society is having red hair. Felicity seems to have it all—fantastic red hair, good friends, a hot boyfriend, artistic talent, and a shot at winning the Miss Scarlet pageant. But it is all a sham—her hair is the product of a bottle. Felicity will go to any lengths to keep her secret from being discovered, but in the process, she realizes that she has real issues with Scarletville’s prejudices.
What Happened to Goodbye by Sarah Dessen
Mclean has moved four times in the last two years, each time reinventing herself. Her goal is not so much to change her identity as it is to hide that she is the daughter of parents whose divorce was public and scandalous. Furious with her mother and idol, Mclean must come to terms with the divorce and make peace with her mom.