...so when Into the Wild Nerd Yonder by Julie Halpern was recommended to me by several other library staff, I picked it up and thought I'd check out a couple of chapters. I started reading at the dinner table just before bedtime and wound up staying up into the wee hours of the morning to finish the book. It was so engrossing, I never even moved despite losing circulation in my legs at one point.
It's the first day of school and Jessie's friends have turned up in full poseur punk style and are flirting with Jessie's crush. Jessie decides it's time to reevaluate who her friends really are and maybe make some new ones. She just didn't expect her new friends to be nerds.
I loved Jessie, the main character, for her attitude and sense of humor and I even loved her sense of style. I loved how the D&D nerds and band camp kids were actual people instead of stereotypes. I loved how Jessie's struggle between being herself and being liked is so honestly portrayed. I yelled at the jerks in the book, winced at the betrayals, and laughed out loud frequently. In short, I loved this book. And not just because I'm a nerd.
