Jacksonville Public Library

Free radicals, Lila Riesen

eng

no index present

Ages 12+, Nancy Paulsen Books

fiction

Free radicals

1333920454

Lila Riesen

"Sixteen-year-old Mafi Shahin knows life is not always fair. If it were, she'd have just as much freedom as her older brother, Rafi, and her crush -- basketball star Jalen Thomas -- would see her as more than Rafi's kid sister. And if life were fair, Mafi's family in Afghanistan wouldn't have to flee their homes to be safe. Life may not be fair, but as her high school's secret avenger -- known as the Ghost -- Mafi vows to make it a bit more even, meting out karmic justice on behalf of classmates who've been wronged. They simply leave a revenge note detailing the transgression in the knot of the SOL tree, and Mafi takes care of the rest. But there are rules to being the Ghost: Don't get caught. Never reveal your identity. Never involve the police, and definitely don't get emotionally involved. But at the start of sophomore year, everything changes when a wish turns up in the tree instead -- a wish that makes Mafi break all her rules, putting her heart and even her family in Afghanistan at risk. Now Mafi will have to decide who she wants to be -- the Ghost making the world a more just place from the shadows, or someone real, standing up for what's right by the light of day. Full of humor and a great big beating heart, <i>Free Radicals</i> is a sharply written coming-of-age tale where one girl discovers what it means to love a boy, her family, and most importantly, herself." --Book jacket

adolescent