How Not to be Popular by Jennifer Ziegler

Maggie Dempsey is a pro at fitting in. That’s because she never stays in one place for more than eight months. And that’s because her parents are all about “going somewhere.” They don’t see it as “leaving,” unlike Maggie, who’s had to leave behind a best friend and a boyfriend in Portland, Oregon. Maggie is tired of being hurt, so she comes up with Operation Avoid Friends: she’s going to be unpopular.

This is harder than it sounds. Maggie has to come up with ridiculous schemes in order to seem like a complete freak that no one should hang out with. But the hottest guy at the school won’t leave her alone. Maggie is starting to form friendships with members of the Helping Hands club. And people start to copy her elaborate and crazy costumes that she wears to school. It’s almost seems that Maggie is…popular.

I thought that How Not to be Popular was one of the best and most refreshing books I’ve read in a while. Maggie’s character is laugh-out-loud hilarious, and so are her parents. I thoroughly enjoyed reading Maggie’s story and her struggles between wanting to have the easy way out and being herself. The plot was easy to follow and fun to read, although some parts of the story were more emotional. I highly recommend this book for teens, and I hope Jennifer Ziegler writes more fabulous novels like this one.

Rating: 4.75

Review copy from personal collection