Appetite for Detention » (First Edition)

Sloane Tanen is the author of several books for adults, including the bestselling Bitter with Baggage Seeks Same, Going for the Bronze, and Hatched! The Big Push from Pregnancy to Motherhood. She is also the creator of the children’s titles Where Is Coco Going?, Coco All Year Round, C Is for Coco, and Coco Counts. Sloane received her BA from Sarah Lawrence College and holds graduate degrees in literary theory and art history. Sloane lives in Manhattan with her husband and son.

Following the success of Sloane Tanen’s adult books comes a title aimed directly at teens. From back-to-school anxiety and chick cliques to gym class, teachers, and other eye-rolling icons of school life, these photographic scenes of the teen experience are as ingenious as they are hilarious. Specifically concerned with the trials and tribulations of high school and teendom, this book will have teens everywhere (and more than a few adults) laughing with recognition.

Publishers Weekly

Slotting in between Tanen's adult titles (Bitter with Baggage Seeks Same) and her concept books (C Is for Coco), this gift-size collection of cleverly staged scenes follows a flock of her trademark fuzzy toy chicks during the awkward years-those preceding hen- and rooster-hood. Interweaving storylines star seven chicks from various social circles, from it girl Caitlin (the only pink chick in school) to friendless Edgar, who "wasn't a skater, a punk, a jock, a geek, or a nerd. He was just depressed, and he hadn't found that clique yet"; the author skewers each archetype with equal-opportunity ruthlessness. As standalones, many of Tanen's vignettes are viciously funny and locker-ready, such as showing queen-bee-wannabe Marissa passed out in front of a boutique, her Gucci-esque purse and ever-present diet soda fallen into the gutter ("Was it nerves about going back to school, her strict 250-calorie-a-day diet, or toxic shock from the tampon she'd finally figured out how to use?"). Tanen's unsentimental portraits will find favor with teens who rely on a wicked sense of humor to endure school, as well as older readers who remember those days well-if not fondly. Ages 12-up. (Aug.)

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