Laura Finnegan attends a swanky all-girls’ private school with the children of Manhattan’s upper crust elite. As a scholarship student, Laura is careful not to take advantage of her über-rich best friend, Whitney Blake. In return, Whit offers everything from an open ear to designer hand-me-downs to trips with the Blake family to exotic locations. While Laura can’t afford posh labels, she holds her own through a passion for sewing and design, which impresses her often-materialistic classmates.

Sophomore year is the biggest at their school. Add one part Sweet Sixteen, one part girl, and countless parts money, and it becomes a race to see who can throw the best, most expensive and star-studded birthday bash. Until now, it’s been assumed that Whitney’s event will be the celebration to end all celebrations.

The arrival of California party-girl Sophie Mitchum shakes up Whitney’s planned bash—and it gets worse when Soph totally crushes on Jake, a student at a private boy’s school on who Whit has staked her claim. With Laura caught in the middle, tensions between Whit and Soph escalate into full-blown Prada-flinging war.

Heavy in teen lingo and emotional drama, Bittersweet Sixteen introduces teens to an exclusive world dripping with money. What middle- or lower-class kid doesn’t wish they could spend a day with their wealthy peers? These kids are represented in the character of Laura. She exists both in and outside the culture of the extremely rich, and it’s not all kicks and giggles. As with any other social class, people are people, and everyone can find trouble, fight with friends, and find redemption. The question is how to get to where you want to go; and this is Laura’s story of that journey.

Karasyov and Kargman write in a hip, chick-lit style that will appeal to most teenage girls. Despite the humorous beat, they evoke feelings common to today’s teens. Think of this as the modern fable for the average kid who wishes they could grasp something more.  “The grass is greener on the other side” is the theme here, only “The Jimmy Choos are better on the other side” might apply.

Reviewed by Christina Wantz Fixemer
7/8/2006

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