Title: Dirty Liar by Brian James, ISBN: 0439796237, Push, New York, 2006, $16.95, 285 pp.

Genre: Coming of Age. Grades 9-12.

Characters: Benji (a.k.a. Dogboy), a troubled high school student looking for answers; Rianna, Benji’s girlfriend at his new school; Lacie, Benji’s ex-girlfriend at his old school; Sean and Keith, Benji’s new friends; Jordan, Benji’s nemesis; Benji’s emotionally distant Dad; Benji’s alcoholic Mom; Pollyanna, Benji’s step-sister; Janet, Benji’s step-mother; Roy, Benji’s Mom’s abusive boyfriend.  

Plot:        Benji (nicknamed Dogboy) must get away from his alcoholic, apathetic mother and her abusive boyfriend, even if that means going to live with his emotionally distant father in Portland. Always an outsider, Benji quickly falls in with the other outsiders at his new school, Covington Senior High School. They spend their time listening to music, looking at pornographic magazines and smoking pot in their secret shed.

                Things begin to look up for Benji when Rianna, a pretty and popular girl at the school, actually reciprocates his interest in her. The two begin to see each other, but Benji’s self-destructive personality, the result of years of emotional and physical abuse, begins to surface. Feeling guilty that he never totally broke up with his previous girlfriend, Lacie, and not sure how to function successfully within a healthy relationship, Benji nearly loses Rianna through a haze of personal angst.   

                When Benji’s step-mother reads his private notebooks, full of his most intimate thoughts and emotions, he runs away from home—but not far enough. Running into his nemesis, Jordan, he gets into a fight, but finds a true friend in Sean.

                Eventually ending up back at home, Benji first has an emotional confrontation with his father and step-mother, then with Lacie on the phone, all leading to a catharsis where he can finally free himself from his demons and his secrets.   

Touchy Areas: Strong language, drug use and a scene of physical/sexual abuse.

Related Titles: This Boy’s Life (1989) by Tobias Wolff; Smack (2003) by Melvin Burgess; Freewill (2002) by Chris Lynch

Movies: River’s Edge (1987); Rumble Fish (1983); Rebel without a Cause (1955)

Music: Nevermind (1991) by Nirvana

Related Websites: About Teen Depression (http://www.about-teen-depression.com/)

Art: The Scream by (1893) Edvard Munch

Poetry: A Season in Hell (1873) by Arthur Rimbaud

Classic Work: The Catcher in the Rye (1951) by J.D. Salinger

Evaluation: Eschewing plot in favor of characterization, Dirty Liar explores the psychology of troubled teens with more humanity and honesty than most young adult books. James’ precision with language and attention to detail make this novel unsettling and emotionally riveting. Not for the faint of heart, but engrossing, important and rewarding. I rate this book 10 out of 10.

Reviewed by: David Pyles, University of Toledo