Are U 4 Real?

May 11, 2009
In this bestselling Swedish novel, Kadefors shows a thorough understanding of teenage dialogue and anxieties. When they first meet online, L.A. party girl, Kyla, and male ballet dancer, Alex, are careful not to reveal too much about their troubled backgrounds. But as lies lead to hurtful misunderstandings, truths about their dysfunctional families and problems with friends emerge (Kyla's mother is clinically depressed; Alex's Russian mother is overbearing and overprotective). Email messages, inserted into the text, reveal plenty of emotion ("Why can't our moms get that we're human beings, not some puppets they can use to act out scenes in the lives they want?"), but little information about specific issues; Kadefors's third-person narrative proves more enlightening in revealing the teens' conflicts and insecurities. There are some pacing problems: it seems to take forever for Kyla and Alex to feel comfortable enough with each other to be honest, and the story's denouement drags on. However, there is enough drama present throughout the book to keep readers on board until Kyla's and Alex's roller-coaster relationship turns into a romantic connection. Ages 14-up.

August 1, 2009
Gr 9 Up-Alex is a shy and socially awkward boy from Oakland, and although he is straight, everyone thinks he is gay because he is a ballet dancer. Kyla is a beautiful party girl from Los Angeles who drinks too much and sleeps around. Her parents are divorced, her mother is clinically depressed, and her father is uninvolved in her life, except for an occasional check. One night, the teens meet online, and they develop a relationship, gradually opening up more and more to one another about their lives. When they meet in real life, however, the conflicts between them threaten to derail their budding romance. This is an English translation of an award-winning Swedish book, "Sandor Slash Ida", originally published in 2001 and later made into a film. At times, it shows its age, but its essential appeal is in its portrayal of how two very different teens manage to connect with each other, despite all their insecurities and missteps along the way. Kadefors also has fun with subverting some of the usual stereotypes. Of the two, Alex is the more sympathetic. Kyla does some cruel things to him and other people, actions that are only partially explained by her painful family situation, and it is often difficult to understand why Alex would continue to be attracted to her. Parts of the plot have not translated well from the Swedish setting to contemporary California, but this book may appeal to some readers because of the online angle and the romance between opposites."Kathleen E. Gruver, Burlington County Library, Westampton, NJ"

Copyright 2009 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

July 1, 2009
Alex (a picked-on male ballet dancer) and Kyla (a popular party girl) meet in an online chatroom. They discover how much they have in common, and their correspondence becomes a deep but stormy friendship. The characters are too broadly drawn to evoke much sympathy, but the angst experienced by this Swedish import's protagonists may resonate with readers.

(Copyright 2009 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)