Just for Clicks

by Kara McDowell

Overview

Mommy blogs are great . . . unless the blog happens to belong to your mom.

Twin sisters Claire & Poppy are accidental social media stars thanks to Mom going viral when they were babies. Now, as teens, they're expected to contribute by building their own brand. Attending a NY fashion week and receiving fan mail is a blast. Fending off internet trolls and would-be kidnappers? Not so much. Poppy embraces it. Claire hates it. Will anybody accept her as "just Claire"? And what should Claire do about Mom's old journals? The handwritten entries definitely don't sound like Mom's perfect blog persona. Worse, one of them divulges a secret that leaves Claire wondering what else in her life might be nothing but a sham . . .

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781948705233
Publisher:	Chicago Review Press, Incorporated
Publication date:	02/19/2019
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	250
Lexile:	HL700L (what's this?)
File size:	3 MB
Age Range:	13 Years

About the Author

Born in the mountains and raised in the desert, Kara J. McDowell spent her childhood swimming, boating, and making up stories in her head. She loved growing up in a big family, where there was always someone to play with, someone to fight with, and something to read. After graduating from Arizona State University, Kara worked as a freelance writer and a blogger. Now she writes novels for teenagers from her home in Arizona, where she lives with her husband and three young sons.

Just for Clicks is Kara's debut novel.

Editorial Reviews

2018-09-30

What is it like to grow up with no privacy because your mother has shared your entire existence on the internet?

Twin sisters Claire and Poppy Dixon (assumed white) have grown up in Gilbert, Arizona—but also in the public eye of millions of strangers thanks to their mother's incessant mommy blogging. As a high school senior, Claire is disenchanted with her fishbowl existence. The arrival of worldly, well-traveled new student Rafael Alejandro Luna (who is half of Mexican descent and doesn't know his mother) provides Claire with the opportunity to be "Just Claire" instead of internet famous. Later, after Rafael discovers her online identity, the teens grow closer until Claire feels safe enough to reveal even deeper secrets. In her debut novel, McDowell combines a strong plot with snippets of text, emails, and website comments to deliver a clever meditation on privacy, family, and loyalty. Using a first-person perspective, the novel focuses on topical issues such as phone addiction and social media obsession while also addressing typical teen fare of romance and family drama. The fast-paced action and several surprising plot developments keep the reader's interest as the tension between Claire and her family mounts and her attraction to the unusually forgiving Rafael grows.

Breezy and fresh meditation on privacy and relationships in the internet age, with a likable protagonist who would rather code than braid her hair for a fashion vlog.(Fiction. 12-18)

Kirkus Reviews