Author: Mark Peter Hughes
Publisher: November 11, 2008
Publisher: Delacorte Books for Young Readers
Lemonade Mouth is the story of five misfit 9th graders who meet in detention. in a moment of goofing off while the teacher monitoring the detention session is out of the room they discover an affinity for music. Persuaded by that same teacher, Stella, Olivia, Mo, Charlie and Wen form a band that is eclectic and good. On their way to becoming a cohesive group they each battle their own challenges. Stella compares herself against her geniuses of a mother and sister and sees hersekf as dumb rather than the wave making, trouble making, thought provoking personality that she has. Mo struggles with life as a first generation Indian-American girl. Her family wants her to live by their traditional roles for girls while she wants to be a normal American teen. Olivia struggles with being an introvert with a secret about her parents which she believes will drive friends away when they find out. Charlie talks to the personality he attributes to his twin brother who died as an infant. Wen struggles with a one sided attraction to his father's new girlfriend and struggles with the idea of his family changing.
What I loved about this book was how the story was told. it alternated through the viewpoints of the five members of the band as well as a few fans and friends of the five. We really get to see how these five very different teens are thrown together and form very close ties of friendship. Their music lets the teens stand up against the oppression that they feel as misfits and musicians in a school that has changed it's focus to the athletes due to a corporate sponsorship to gain money to finish building the new gym. They begin to build other friendships outside of the group, and help their classmates see past the divide of popularity.
I read this book after seeing the Disney movie based on it. While I really enjoyed the movie I adored the book. This is one of those books that every preteen and young teenager should read as it portrays the struggles and development of ideals that they will each face as they enter high school. I also found myself wanting tunes to go along with the lyrics of the songs that Lemonade Mouth sings in the book.
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