Amy

Amy by Mary Hooper Bloomsbury Children's Books, 2002, 176 pp., $14.95 Relationships/The Internet ISBN: 1-58234-793-X

Shunned by her best friends, fifteen-year-old Amy's loneliness leads her, as her Internet screen name Buzybee, to an online chat room and to Zed. Despite parental warnings, Amy is simply positive that the young man joining her for private messaging is her dream come true. Zed is older and successful at his job in sales; plus, the photo he attaches shows an attractive blonde guy. Filled with anticipation and excitement, Amy's own personal problems with friends, family, and school, suddenly seem irrelevant.

The plot unfolds through a series of interviews between Amy and a policewoman-and in the officer's presence, Amy tells the story of her unfortunate series of events with the mysterious dreamboat Zed. And even though the reader knows that something has occurred between Amy and Zed, the revelation of "what has really happened on Amy's innocent visit to meet Zed at his seaside town" are only revealed when Amy and a friend return to the scene of the incident.

Suspenseful and chock-full-of techno jargon, Amy's story is fast-paced and believable. The British usage and slang won't prevent understanding in this cautionary tale of possible risks in "online relationships."

Judith Hayn

Skokie, Illinois

Copyright Assembly on Literature for Adolescents -- National Council of Teachers of English Fall 2002
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