The teen years can be full of painfully overwhelming moral decisions.  Brandon Hoang's Gloria Buenrostro is NOT My Girlfriend explores one such dilemma.  

     Gary Vo and his best friend are way low on their school's social hierarchy.  They're yearning to get in with the elite.  They know they're pretty despicable.  But they can overlook a little nastiness to snag their dream social life.  Unexpectedly they get the chance.  All they have to do is steal a bracelet from Gloria, who is considered the hottest girl in the school.

     NOT SO SIMPLE.  Gary has gotten to know Gloria a lot better.  Her reputation is quite misleading.  In fact she's a smart, kind, thoughtful, funny girl.  He wants to keep her in his life. And he knows what the bracelet means to her.

     Now he has a decision to make.  Does he let his long term best friend down and perhaps lose him?  Or does he hurt someone he's come to really care about?

    The plot is rich and believable.  The characters are complex and nuanced, except the elites who are truly despicable.  Teen readers will find this book truly engaging and thought and emotion provoking.

Jules Hathaway