Bookanistas: GOING VINTAGE by Lindsey Leavitt

Plot without spoilers...High school junior Mallory discovers her boyfriend has been cheating on her with a cyber-girlfriend. So, inspired by a list of goals dashed off by her grandmother in 1962, she ditches the internet, her cellphone and other modern conveniences and decides to live in what she imagines was the idyllic bygone year in which Grandma's list was written.

Of literary interest...Each chapter of the novel begins with a list, creating an internal examination of the details of the main list which drives the story's plot. From "Possible Ways to Live Dangerously" to "Boys I've Kissed," the funny, poignant and very relatable lists provide a structure to the story as beautifully tailored as Mallory's 1960s-style prom dress! A favorite, excerpted from Chapter 23, list item #2: "Good rule for life...STAY CLOSE TO THE CHEESE." (Read the book and you'll stop here to laugh out loud.)

Finally, just gotta say...The best thing about GOING VINTAGE is the way the author weaves together topical issues and rich relationships (the role of the internet in contemporary friendships and romances, a grandparent's loss of a spouse, a family's financial woes, and an especially charming bond between two sisters) into a novel that is at once brightly funny and wonderfully thought-provoking.

A terrific read for the upcoming prom season, GOING VINTAGE pubs in March. You can pre-order it here.

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