The Half Life of Planets

Her deal: on the last day of school, Liana finds a one-word note in her locker and that word is slut.  Sure, Liana's kissed a lot of boys, but is that who she really is?  And why is the kissing easy, but everything else is so hard?  As a scientific endeavor, Liana resolves to go kiss-free all summer.  Then she meets Hank.

His deal: Hank can tell you all you want to know (and quite a bit you don't) about rock music recorded before 2003.  But he can't talk to girls.  Actually, he has a hard time talking to anybody because he has Asperger's syndrome.  Then he meets Liana.

There have been quite a few co-authored young adult novels set up in alternating He said, She said chapters.  It is a fun idea, but only if the switchbacks are seamless.  If the authors are too intent on showcasing their style I get thrown out of the story itself: Now I'm reading so-and-so's chapter; I can tell by the relentless witty banter and 80s pop culture references.

Emily Franklin and Brendan Halpin keep Half-Life balanced.  I don't know who wrote what and I don't care, I just want to know if Hank and Liana are going to work things out and start kissing already.

If you aren't having a great one already, this book showcases some of the best things about summer: hanging out on the boardwalk, playing skeeball, water fights, eating too much candy, outdoor concerts, and possibly falling in love.  Painful, nausea-inducing, freakout, amazing love.  Yeah.