Hormone Jungle: Coming of Age in Middle School — Brod Bagert

Open Christina's scrapbook and enter a world where girls rule and boys drool, where hormones rage, and where poetry captures the impassioned, lovesick, humiliated, and hilarious voice of the middle school student. College-bound Christina Curtis scrapbooks her years in middle school as a member of the Digital Poets, a group of students who find their voices through verse. Weaving her own narrative into the poems of her peers, Christina tells the story of her friendship with Steven Gilley, the obnoxious, girl-teasing, and “unbearably immature” boy who incites her to write her first poem. But Steven holds a secret that makes him wise beyond his years, leaving Christina to wonder if there isn't more to this “unbearable” boy than meets the eye. From best friends and crushes, to underarm hair, and an all-out battle-of-the-sexes poetry war, the varied voices of the Digital Poets reflect both the humor and angst of middle school students coming of age in the Hormone Jungle. Hormone Jungle won the Association of Educational Publishers' 2007 Distinguished Achievement Award, the 2007 Independent Publisher Gold Book Award, the 2008 International Reading Association's Young Adults' Choices Award, and the 2009 Gold Mom's Choice Award!