Senior year changes everything for two teens in this poignant, funny coming-of-age story that looks at what happens when the image everyone has of us no longer matches who we really are. Senior year of high school is full of changes. For Hayley Mills, these changes aren’t exactly welcome. All she wants is for everyone to forget about her very public breakdown and remember her as the overachiever she once was—and who she’s determined to be again. But it’s difficult to be seen as a go-getter when she’s forced into TV Production class with all the slackers like Lewis Holbrook. For Lewis, though, this is going to be his year. After a summer spent binging 80s movies, he’s ready to upgrade from the role of self-described fat, funny sidekick to leading man of his own life—including getting the girl. The only thing standing in his way is, well, himself. When the two are partnered up in class, neither is particularly thrilled. But then they start making mini documentaries about their classmates’ hidden talents, and suddenly Hayley is getting attention for something other than her breakdown, and Lewis isn’t just a background character anymore. It seems like they’re both finally getting what they want—except what happens when who you’ve become isn’t who you really are? Gr 9 Up-Hall's first novel leaves readers with a taste of a feel-good coming-of-age teen story that hearkens back to the 1980s teen movies he so often references. Hayley Mills is a high-achieving high school senior looking forward to getting past the mental breakdown she endured last year. Lewis Holbrook is also a senior, but his focus is learning how to become the leading man like so many of his favorite 1980s movies and finally getting the girl of his dreams. When Hayley and Lewis find themselves partnered up in their TV production class, things get off to a rocky start; but their forced alliance eventually gives way to friendship and perhaps something even more. After a series of adventures that include being chased by the cops and playing laser tag, they both find what they were looking for all along, but just not quite in the way they originally planned. Chapters alternate focus on each protagonist, and both main characters provide entertaining dialogue in their respective chapters as readers watch the events unfold through both points of view. Secondary characters could have been developed further, especially in the instance of Lewis's quest to "win over the girl." Overall, the story wraps up in a perfectly neat way you'd expect from feel-good high school story. The main characters are white. VERDICT A good recommendation to teens having trouble dealing with the future after high school, this is a solid addition to any library with an active teen department.-David Roberts, Salem P.L., OHα(c) Copyright 2011. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted. Spencer Hall graduated from the University of the Cumberlands in Kentucky in with a BS in English. He moved to Chicago to study improv, but soon realized when it came to being funny, he was better at writing things down than making them up on the spot. When he’s not writing, he can be found running by the lake, occasionally performing stand-up comedy at poorly attended open mic nights, and researching how to become a professional mini-golf player. Kind of Sort of Fine is his first novel. Chapter One: Hayley ONE HAYLEY If you’re going to have an emotional breakdown and stop your car in the middle of a busy intersection, let me suggest the main entrance of Groveland High School. It’s wide, there’s plenty of sunlight, and it’s also Arby’s-adjacent just in case you want to grab some curly fries after the police show up and pull you from your vehicle. You’ll want to remember to dress appropriately, because several of your classmates will be filming the entire ordeal on their phones. Maybe wear something simple like jeans and a T-shirt but also have on a Batman Halloween mask, as if to say, “Sure, I’m crazy, but I’m the fun kind of crazy!” Or maybe wear a long flowing gown and wet your hair like Ophelia à la Hamlet , act four. That’s Shakespearean crazy, arguably the classiest form of crazy. If you’re hoping to use this moment to make some kind of statement, I suggest investing in a bullhorn or at least a poster board with large, legible writing. Because despite your other numerous accomplishments, this is what you’ll be remembered for during your time in high school. Sadly, it’s too late for me to take my own advice. But even if I could go back in time and make these adjustments, I doubt it would keep me from ending up here—the school conference room with my parents and me on one side of the table and Principal Wexler and Mr. Keith on the other. Meetings like this are never good. Your school administration will never call you in two days before the start of your senior year to tell you how well you’re doing and how thrilled they are to