Shug, by Jenny Han

Shug [shoog] – noun: short for Sugar, as used in The Color Purple. Real Name: Annemarie. Twelve year old female entering middle school.

Shug’s mother thinks she should “squeeze every last drop out of life and be special.” But Annemarie Wilcox feels far too freckly, tall and flat-chested to be anything special. She finds it hard to compete with her gorgeous, Korean-American friend Elaine, who hails from New York and has amazing city style. At her friend Sherilynn’s annual back-to-school pool party, all the girls are wearing two piece bathing suits, while Shug gets teased by the guys for being as flat as the diving board. And to top it off, she recently discovered that she wants her bff, Mark, to be more than just her friend. As they have been friends since they were five, Annemarie fears he will never see past their long-standing friendship.

I loved Annemarie because despite her insecurities, she does embrace who she is, her family, and where she comes from. Unlike most teens who desperately want to get away from their hometown, Shug extrapolates on the many reasons why she loves her small town. Certainly every kid feels nervous and insecure like Shug on her first day of middle school, navigating class changes, locker combinations, and a new cafeteria hierarchy. This may not be the award-winning piece of literature like The Color Purple, but for tween girls looking nervously ahead to middle school, Shug is a perfect companion to ease some of the insecurity and elicit lots of laughs.

Han, J. (2006). Shug. New York: Simon & Schuster. ISBN 978-1-4169-0942-2.