Dirty Laundry
by Daniel Ehrenhaft

    DIRTY LAUNDRY by Daniel Ehrenhaft
    Category:  Contemporary
    Age Recommendation:  Grades 9+
    Release Date:  12/30/08
    Publisher:  HarperTeen
    Reviewed by:  Jaglvr
    Rating:  4 Stars


    Carli Gemz is going undercover.  She’s off to the Winchester School of the Arts to get into character for her
    upcoming TV series, Private Nights.  She will have the son of the creator, Fellini Udall Newport (aka FUN) at her
    disposal as her personal assistant.

    Fun has no desire to be the slave to Carli, whom he has to refer to as Sheila Smith, her character’s name.  Being her
    assistant is part of the arrangement his father has made with Headmaster Stanton to keep Fun at Winchester.  Fun
    should’ve been kicked out for his graffiti art around campus.  Instead, his girlfriend, Charity, was expelled for getting
    caught in the male dorm.   Life is not fair.

    Senior year starts out with the news that Darcy Novak, the basic do-gooder of the senior class, has gone missing.  
    Fun’s roommate, Nails, used to date Darcy and may be a suspect in her disappearance.  Also in question is Darcy’s
    most recent boyfriend, Kirk Bishop.  Kirk’s family has donated enormous amounts of money to Winchester, and he is
    able to get away with just about anything.  

    When Fun and Carli meet, they actually form a bond and the two decide to investigate Darcy’s disappearance, each
    for their own reasons.  As they stumble through the first part of the school year, the mystery around Darcy grows.  
    More of their acquaintances come under suspect, and the two no longer know who they can trust.

    Told in alternating voices, Fun and Carli reveal their thoughts to the reader as they try to figure out what happened to
    Darcy.  They both have their own issues to work through, but they come to rely on each other as they days pass and
    the mystery is no closer to being solved.

    DIRTY LAUNDRY bounces back and forth between the two characters.  At times it was hard to keep track of who
    was doing the talking, but overall, the story was intriguing.  Mr. Ehrenhaft was able to keep the intrigue surrounding
    Darcy’s disappearance cleverly hidden up until the final few pages.  

    Fun and Carli were both creative characters with quirky personalities, but it would be nice to see their characters
    develop even more in a follow-up story.