<h3>Angus, Thongs and Full-Frontal Snogging</h3>

Rennison, L. (1999). Angus, Thongs and Full-Frontal Snogging: Confessions of Georgia Nicolson. NY: Harper Collins. ISBN: 0060288140.

Plot Summary: The story is told through the journal of a teenage girl named Georgia Nicolson. Georgia is growing up in England with her best friend Jas and a group of other friends who share secrets, have sleepovers and talk about boys. She lives with her mother, father, her little sister Libby and her half Scottish Wildcat, Angus. Georgia falls for a 'gorgey' boy, named Robbie. After taking snogging (kissing) lessons from Peter, a supposed kissing expert, Georgia finally wins Robbie over and the two of them decide to date.

Meanwhile, Georgia’s parents do their best to make life both embarrassing and boring for Georgia, by forbidding her from dying her hair, teasing her, and doing other parenty things that make Georgia want to die or move to France. It turns out Georgie doesn’t have to, though, when her father moves to New Zealand. Her mom might be flirting with the new contractor, as he’s taking an awful long time to fix their living room. Georgia need not worry about that, because by the end of the book, they’ll be moving to New Zealand to be with her dad.

Critical Evaluation: This book is the first of ten books in the Confessions of Georgia Nicolson series. It’s filled with journal entries about the joys and angst of Georgia’s fourteen-year old life as a typical sassy and funny British teenager. It’s hilarious in it’s accurate portrayal of teenage disdain for everything, the ongoing insecurity and reckless daring that Georgia and her friends exhibit. Teens will be able to relate to this character, imagine her as their obnoxious but good-hearted friend and take comfort in seeing the absurdities of life in print. Also, the book includes a funny glossary of British teen slang terms for the discerning American reader.

Reader’s Annotation:
Georgia deals with a little sister who likes to leave wet diapers in her bed, a best friend who is almost as boy crazy as she is and a cat who might just be the next weapon of mass destruction. During the year she takes kissing lessons and ends up with a few boyfriends (or at least she thinks they are boyfriends). But, does she get the boy that she really wants?

Information About the Author:
Louise Rennison was born in 1951 and is a writer and comedian. She was born in England and attended Brighton University. According to her biography, “Although she lives in Brighton in reality, in her mind she lives somewhere exotic with a manservant called Juan. This is because she lost her mind after Angus, Thongs and Full-Frontal Snogging catapulted her into the spotlight of fame.” This book won the Nestlé Smarties Book Prize Bronze Award, was shortlisted for the Branford Boase Award and was voted #127 in the BBC's Big Read poll to find the UK's favorite book. The book was made into a British film in July 2008.

Genre:
Contemporary Life: Coming of Age
Alternative Formats: Diaries and Journals

Curriculum Ties:
English class, Book clubs, Social clubs, Filmmaking class

Booktalking Ideas
• Current British slang terms being used by teens
• Is Georgia a good or bad friend?
• The boys in her life: Peter, Mark, Robbie
• Her disdain for her parents: Merited or just typical teen attitude?
• Her love for her little sister

Reading Level/Interest Age: Grades 9-12

Challenge Issues/Defenses:

Potential Challenges:
• Sexual Content
• Adult language
• Age Appropriateness

Defense Strategy:

• Provide our Collection Development Policy (which includes Young Adult scope): http://ww2.cityofpasadena.net/library/collection.asp

• Refer to awards won by this book by reputable organizations:
http://www.harpercollins.com/books/9780064472272/Angus_Thongs_and_FullFrontal_Snogging/index.aspx

• Provide book reviews by literary journals and media publications:
http://www.bookbrowse.com/reviews/index.cfm?book_number=1043
http://www.powells.com/cgi-bin/biblio?isbn=0064472272

• Provide book reviews by actual readers on a publicly accessible website:
http://www.amazon.com/Angus-Thongs-Full-Frontal-Snogging-Confessions/dp/0064472272

Why This Book Was Included:
It’s kind of fun to include a book by a contemporary British author with a British teen female protoganist. Georgia is irrepressible and sassy which makes the book great fun to read. There isn’t a lot of meat to these books, but it’s a nice change of pace to simply enjoy the comedic adventures of a typical teen.