From the back cover:
Ever wonder who was the first kid to keep a wallet on a big chunky chain, or wear way-too-big-pants on purpose? What about the mythical first guy who wore his baseball cap backwards? These are the Innovators, the people at the peak of the cool pyramid.
Seventeen-year-old Hunter Braque is a Trendsetter, on the second level of the pyramid. His job: find the newest, coolest thing for the retail market. His MO: observe, don’t get involved. But from the moment he meets Innovator Jen James, he can’t help getting involved in a big way.
Part love story, part mystery, part stinging satire, Scott Westerfeld’s spellbinding novel will make you question everything you’ve ever believed about how to be cool.
Review:
So Yesterday isn’t bad, it’s just boring. For such a short little book, it took me a while to make it through.
Cons: The plot is very silly, involving a missing friend, some apparently amazing shoes, and preserving the sanctity of “the cool pyramid.” The word “cool” is used approximately 412.9 times. There’s a mistake regarding whose cell phone called whom that no editor seems to’ve caught. The main characters are shallow and uninteresting. Because of something the lead character states at the beginning of the story, the supposed bad guys never project any true menace.
Pros: It’s occasionally amusing. Um… that’s about the only one I can think of.
This is the second book I’ve read by Scott Westerfeld, and so far I am not impressed. And yet, I’ve just started the second book in one of his series. No one can say I’m not giving this dude a chance! I do have to wonder whether actual young adults like this book or are insulted by the implication that they’re all obsessed with being “cool.” Maybe they are, and I’m just too old now to remember how it was.
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