Shattering Glass by Gail Giles

Giles, Gail (2003). Shattering Glass. NY: Simon Pulse.
ISBN: 978-0689858000
Awards: South Carolina Young Adult Book Award Nominee (2004-2005)
ALA Best Books for Young Adults (2003)
ALA Popular Paperbacks for Young Adults (2005)
ALA Quick Picks for Reluctant Young Adult Readers (2003)
Abraham Lincoln Illinois High School Book Award Nominee (2007)
Bibliotherapeutic Usefulness: Bullying, Rape, Murder, Peer Pressure, Cliques
Genre: Fiction
Annotation: Rob and his cronies kill Simon Glass. We know this from the start because no one likes Simon Glass, not when he is a fat, bumbling nerd, and not after they turn him into being popular.
Summary: Simon Glass is overweight, a sniveler, and has the fashion sense of a four year old. When he catches the eye of Rob, the newest senior class top dog, Simon's life gets a makeover. Told from the perspective of one of Rob's cronies, readers get to follow along as Rob gets more and more intense and Simon raises in popularity. The players in Rob's game are vaguely aware that Rob is getting out of hand, but no one has the power to stop the progression. Added to this is that Simon isn't willing to stay under Rob's control. Building up to the final act of violence that readers know is coming, is a story of friends, power, and secret pasts.
Evaluation: I chose to read this book because it embraces the popularity power struggle of high school boys. We often see this in books for girls, but not so for boys. Overall, I think the characters are well written and the story moves along nicely. The narrator's voice is honest and his inner dialog emotionally balanced. However, I did have a hard time believing the actual murder scene. While Rob's character is complex, I do not see him capable of such an uncontrolled act.