In With The Out Crowd - by Norma Howe

Author of Novels and Stories for Young Adults

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Houghton Mifflin Company
1986

Avon Flare
1988

Book Description:

Of course, Robin has seen it coming for months. Somehow, at some point, she and her friends, the "double-A tens," the in crowd, have stopped seeing things the same way. Now it seems to Robin that even she and her best friend, Jennifer, have practically nothing in common. How did it start? When did they stop laughing at the same jokes? Why is she the only one who still has the standards they all used to share? And why is everyone taking it so personally when she refuses to "really be Bill's girl'? Isn't that her decision? Still, it's hard for Robin to accept that she might not fit in anymore; in fact, it's frightening. She's always been one of the most popular girls in school, and she and her old crowd have pretty much run things. She's never even wanted to know any of the other kids in school, let alone be friends with them. After all, can life be worth living outside the in crowd?

The story of Robin's fall and rise is told with great humor and insight, as Robin learns that there's not only life but also romance out there. Norma Howe surrounds her heroine with memorable characters, from the awful kids in Robin's crowd to Robin's unusual family, including her eccentric grandmothers and an uncle who's writing a book chronicling images of Jesus that have been found in unexpected places--like on a tortilla. Fans of Ms. Howe's God, the Universe, and Hot Fudge Sundaes will enjoy this funny and perceptive romantic story.

Robin had always been part of the "in" crowd at school. Pretty and popular, she was where the action was--and naturally she was with Bill, the cutest guy in the junior class. But all of a sudden, everything changed. It seemed to start about the time Robin refused to "really be Bill's girl." Not only was Bill mad because he didn't get his way, but Robin's best friends were annoyed at her for turning him down. Suddenly she was out with the in crowd!

But then, from the outside, a lot of things started looking different. Somehow the jokes everybody laughed at didn't seem quite so funny...the guys' tricks and the girls' shrieking seemed kind of juvenile...and one particular boy who had never been part of the in crowd started looking very interesting...

"Teaches us all something new about individualism and love in the '80s"
--San Francisco Chronicle

Excerpts from Reviews

American Library Association - January, 1988
Chosen as a "Recommended Book for Reluctant Young Adult Readers."

School Library Journal - January, 1987
Howe tells a perceptive, entertaining story of a teen who chooses to stand apart from the in crowd and enjoys it.

San Francisco Chronicle (Patricia Holt) - November 19, 1986
Subplots pile on subplots; running jokes keep us laughing and even a tragic death of long ago combine with Robin's budding romance with the school nerd to teach us all something new about individualism and love.

Booklist - November 1, 1986
Challenging romantic formula, high school social convention, and various forms of religion, Howe tries, as she did in God, The Universe, And Hot Fudge Sundaes, to make readers think for themselves.

Voice of Youth Advocate - December, 1986
Well written account of a girl refusing to give up her virginity just because "everybody's doing it."

Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books - January, 1987
There are many adolescent novels that focus on disillusionment setting in, attended by the realization that the "in" group is snobbish, that the despised boy is lovable, and that there is life outside the self-mandated palisade that protects the snobs. This is just better than most of them; more smoothly written, with characters who have depth and who change and grow...

The Book Report - January/February, 1987
The book has humor and the characters are unique.

* Note: In With The Out Crowd is currently out of print. If you are interested in obtaining copies, you can either check out used book sellers on the internet, or contact Norma