As If on Cue

September 1, 2021
In an effort to save the school's arts program, Natalie must partner up with her longtime rival, Reid. Natalie Jacobson has always treated the theater, specifically writing and directing, as a casual pursuit, just for the fun of it. She's afraid to get too invested after seeing the financial and emotional struggles of her parents: her school band director father and burned-out, formerly successful author mother. Natalie's fear that the arts are not a sustainable career path is further confirmed after learning about budget cuts that eliminate her high school's drama club--and ruin her chance to direct the play she co-wrote with a friend. She combines forces with kids from other cancelled arts groups to create a one-night show to convince the school board they made a mistake. Amid the planning, Natalie distracts herself with an ongoing prank war with Reid Callahan, her dad's clarinet prot�g�. But when a prank goes wrong, they're forced to work together on transforming her play into a musical, a process that eventually exposes their feelings for each other. First-person narration alternates between the present-day and the past, revealing the origins of Natalie's rivalry with Reid. Her occasionally rash actions can make it difficult to sympathize with her, but overall, the sweet romance (and talented theater kids!) will charm readers. Natalie and Reid are White and Jewish, and the novel deftly addresses microaggressions and antisemitism; supporting characters have a range of racial and sexual identities. Solid entertainment. (Romance. 12-18)

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November 1, 2021

Gr 9 Up-High school junior Natalie Jacobson loves drama club, but just as a hobby. She's seen the emotional and financial ups and downs that come from a career in the arts and wants no part of that for her future. Her father, a musician, also happens to be the band teacher at Natalie's school, and the clarinet teacher of her enemy, Reid. When budget cuts lead to dramatic reductions in the arts, Natalie is furious. She and her fellow drama club members band together with students from other clubs to convince the school that the arts matter. She also gets involved in a prank war with Reid, whose school band is the only arts program still standing. The pranks quickly escalate, with disastrous results. Suddenly, Natalie and her classmates find themselves in an undesirable situation: work together with the band to create a musical-or have no arts at all. As she and Reid are forced into close proximity, Natalie discovers he may not be her enemy after all. Although the events take place in the present, vignettes from the past are interspersed throughout to provide background on Reid and Natalie's history. Natalie, Reid, and their families are Jewish, and Jewish culture is deftly incorporated into the text, while Natalie's friend group includes people of different racial backgrounds and sexual orientations. Serious topics including microaggressions, anti-Semitism, and sexism are seamlessly woven into an entertaining and humorous story. VERDICT A welcome addition to the teen section in school and public libraries.-Alison Glass, the Anton Bruckner International Sch., Linz, Austria

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