Kate McCaffrey

A good look at how easy it is to get sucked into the ecstacy scene. The story is told by two friends in alternating chapters for each girl's point of view. The characters have enough complexity to make them interesting and the story moves along quickly. Finished it in a day. Not too preachy but gets the point across that ecstacy is a dangerous drug even though it feels so good to be on it.

"Destroying Avalon" is a dark and absorbing YA novel set in Australia. When the main character, a teen named Avalon, has to move to the big city, she's excited about the new opportunities she'll have with the change in schools. Never one to have trouble making friends, Avalon is certain she'll fit in somewhere. The first day of school, she catches the negative attention of Alice, the leader of the pack of cool girls, and her world quickly comes crashing down.
This book grabbed and held my show more attention from the moment I picked it up. Avalon and the other characters are realistic, and their conversations and behaviors are in keeping with those of typical teens without being ridiculously stereotypical. McCaffrey seems to have been on a mission in writing this, and her book is like an easy-to-digest and heartbreaking textbook on cyber bullying.
This book won many awards in its native Australia, and I can understand why. I highly recommend it to teens, educators, and parents who are concerned about bullying, or anyone who wants a good (but dark) YA novel to read. show less

I read this in the twilight of the read-a-thon, and it was perfect for that. The chapters alternate point-of-view between the two girls, Sophie and Mia. Sophie is the popular, outgoing one, and Mia just sort of tags along in her shadow. One decision at one party changes all that, as Sophie convinces Mia to try Ecstasy. What follows is a reversal of positions, with some unfortunate consequences. I think this is a good book for young teen girls to read, especially those who are more like Mia. show more It had some useful lessons about how seemingly small decisions can pile up to become much larger problems, and also about the strength of a good friendship. On an aesthetic note, each girl’s chapters used a different font, which made it easy to keep track of who was speaking. show less

This book explores cyberbullying and the social and peer pressure, issues which are evident in many schools like Avalon's school. It effectively portrays the effect of bullying on Avalon and her friends, which leads up to the suicide of her close friend, Marshall.