Melissa Senate

MY NEW NOVEL FOR TEENS: THE MOSTS

Published by Random House's Delacorte Press June 2010

"Melissa Senate wins Most Awesome with this totally absorbing read!" –Kieran Scott, bestselling author of She's So Dead To Us. (Kieran is one of my favorite teen writers, so thank you, Kieran!

"Senate's THE MOSTS earns its own superlatives. THE MOSTS, an edgy, readable story, gives fresh power to the insight that being young may pass but high school goes on forever. Often, self-image and self-esteem are shaped there, molded by teenage boys focused on sports and girls who accept and reject classmates as ruthlessly as they shop for clothes. Maine novelist Melissa Senate, author of "Theodora Twist," has her eye on that scene and re-creates it for us at fictional "Freeport Academy" in its namesake hometown." –Portland Press Herald/Maine Sunday Telegram

"Talk about the perfect book for a teenager to read over the summer…any teenager-–no matter what 'in' or 'out' clique they happen to call family… This is a fantastic story for any teenager who wants to fit in (let’s just say, every single one of us, because we’ve all been teased about something over our high-school lifetimes).  The author makes fantastic points about being yourself versus fitting in with the crowd; and, how far a person will go to simply be admired and not really cared about by others.  Melissa Senate is the author of eight other novels including a teen debut entitled, Theodora Twist, and she has – most definitely – found a new fan in me." –Bookpleasures

"This is quintessential mean-girl chick-lit material that satisfies without resorting to sex or cursing. A refreshing change from edgier fare, with realistic characters." –Booklist

THE MOSTS is my second novel for teens. (Check out my first, THEODORA TWIST, below.) Set on the coast of Maine, where I live, THE MOSTS is about what happens when the girl voted Most Popular (high school sophomore Madeline) is hired by a group of "misfits" to keep them from being voted onto the dreaded (and vicious) Most Not list. The Not list is underground but will be made public at school on the last day. What are some of the Most Not categories? Most In Need Of An Extreme Makeover. Most Geeky. Most In Need Of A Therapist. Another is: Most Not.

Most Me is what I want the characters to aspire to. But for some, like Most Beautiful (who is anything but beautiful on the inside), and Most Stylish (who's fashion-forward but follower-the-leader backward), being themselves is a big problem for everyone….

A few months ago on Twitter, someone tweeted something like: Since there are Best Books of the Year awards, there should be Worst Books of the Year awards. Well, let me tell you: I disagree. Vehemently. But this is the question at the very core of THE MOSTS–and one posed by Most Beautiful to the main character when she questions why such a mean list like Most Not exists. Caro, Most Beautiful, says something about how the Most This and That lists have been around forever, and if someone is judged on how great they are, why shouldn't someone else be judged for how not great they are. 

She's serious too.

Madeline, the main character, whose own older sister makes the Not list every year (and doesn't give two figs), will discover how she really feels about all this–and her best friends–when she gets involved with the two girls and guy who ask to help "transform" them from Most Not contenders.

I hate mean. I hate bullies and bullying. And while a Most This and That list is superficial–someone voted Most Beautiful didn't exactly accomplish anything since he/she was born that way, right?–a Most or Best list is about praise. A Most Not list, the underground kind that's spread around the school, is about bullying. About cutting people down. About being mean. This topic is especially relevant now in the wake of the very sad story of Phoebe Prince, the Massachusetts sophomore who committed suicide after being relentless bullied. I recently joined a Facebook group called Young Adult Authors Against Bullying (with wall posts and a discussion forum) and I'm so glad it exists. People–adults and children of all ages–need to understand that bullying is about making others miserable, whether verbally, physically–or sometimes by not saying or doing anything at all.

THE MOSTS (published June 2010 by Random House) is available everywhere. (You can order on Amazon or Barnes & Noble or Borders.) I hope you'll check it out. 

Here's the summary from the back cover:

Madeline finished freshman year at Freeport Academy just as invisible as when she started. But after a summer in Italy with her sophisticated aunt, she returned as a sophomore with cool clothes, European attitude, and a hot new boyfriend, Thom.
 
Maddie's part of the in crowd . . . the Mosts. Her best friend, Caro? Most Beautiful. Her other friends, Fergie, Annie, and Selena? Most Stylish, Most Hilarious, and Most Hot, respectively. And Madeline? Most Popular. Her life is great.
 
While it lasted.
 
Now Thom's moved to California—so Maddie's no longer the girlfriend of a popular guy. The guy Caro likes only has eyes for Madeline—can you say social suicide? And a group of misfits at school are begging Madeline to help make them over.
 
Madeline knows there's a fine line between being a Most . . . and being a Not. She doesn't want her status to change . . . but what if she doesn't have a choice?

I hope you enjoy THE MOSTS and I'd love to hear your thoughts after you've read it. You can find my email address on my Contacts page. I love hearing from readers!

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THEODORA TWIST

"A fun and hot summer read." –Teen People

"This book has sugar and spice and everything nice. I loved it."–Sarah Mylnowski

What is it about? 

“I’m going to have to come up with something really good to get you back into the public’s good graces. I have no idea what, but trust me. I’ll think of something.” –Theodora's agent

Well that’s what Theodora pays her agent $100,000 a year for, isn’t it? Theodora Twist is the girl everyone wants to be. She’s Hollywood’s hottest young actress. Producers court her, fans mob her, and the tabloids cover everything.

Emilys life is Boring with a capital B. She’s a 16-year-old nobody to everyone, including her own mother. The only thing remotely interesting about Emily? She lives in Theodora Twist’s former house. But she’s about to get Twisted.

How? On a reality show meant to clean up Theodora’s party girl rep—with Emily’s family as host. It’s just another role for Theodora. Emily is in panic mode. This isn’t just a part . . . it’s her life.

More praise!

"Realistically raw, yet endearing." –New York Post

Senate provides a unique look at teen stardom and reality TV. –School Library Journal

You can find THEODORA TWIST in stores and online! Hope you enjoy it!