OCD, the Dude, and Me by Lauren Roedy Vaughn

It's senior year and Danielle can't wait for it to be over. With her frizzy red hair, quirky tastes, and OCD she sticks out like a sore thumb.  Despite all the trauma she endures at school, she finds it comforting to catalog her days there.  She accomplishes this through a color-coded binder in which she keeps all her English essays, notes, important e-mails, and day-to-day journals.  Experience school through her eyes and find out if Senior year will be the disaster she's expecting.

I loved the epistolary format with Danielle’s essays, journals, etc.  There were many great characters like her aunt who was always ready with words of wisdom, her friend Daniel who introduced her to The Dude, and her pen pal Justine.  What really made the book was Danielle's frank and often humorous descriptions of her life, her dreams, and her worries.  I'd give this to teens looking for a high school misfit story.  

OCD, the Dude, and Me by Lauren Roedy Vaughn

Erica's Pick
7th & 8th grade
Tags: Character Driven, Contemporary Fiction, Diaries, Friendship, Humor, Issues Fiction, School Stories

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