Book Review: The Disreputable History of Frankie Landau-Banks

While the title of this book is a mouthful, I think it is well-suited. It is, perhaps, my favorite E. Lockhart book yet. Even though it took me a while to be fully hooked into the story (well over a hundred pages, but I was interested in learning what the antics would be, so I kept reading), I ended up devouring the last half in one sitting.

The Disreputable History of Frankie Landau-Banks is about boarding schools and secret societies, about language and love, about wanting to be on the inside and longing to make a mark. Frankie, who has blossomed from a gangly, geeky girl of 14 into a buxom, boisterous girl of 15, is tired of being invisible. She no longer wants to be known as "Bunny Rabbit" to her family. When she acquires a senior boyfriend who is involved in a secret society, she decides she absolutely must find a way to infiltrate their all-male ranks. What better way to do that than to outsmart them in their own pranks?

I loved Frankie's gutsy, feisty character. Her voice was distinct and vulnerable. I enjoyed thinking about the use of words. The pranks were magnificent and expertly maneuvered. I couldn't help but fly through the pages wanting to know what would finally topple Frankie from the intricate web of intrigue and mystique she had created. The reader knows from the very first page that Frankie is called on the carpet for her misdeeds. The set-up to those misdeeds took a little while in coming, but once they arrived, I couldn't put the book down.