TSS: A La Carte by Tanita S Davis

Title: A La Carte
Author: Tanita S Davis
ISBN: 9780375848155
Publisher: Alfred A. Knopf /2008
Pages: 278

Lainey, a seventeen year old girl has only one dream, that to be a world class chef. She occasionally helps her mother run her gourmet restaurant and also swears by St. Julia Child. Even though she still is in school but dreams of making it big.

Her one time best friend Simeon borrows $500 from her and runs away. He has some drug problems and has even manipulated others for it. Lainey finds it difficult to face this about him and her mother too diapproves about her lending money to Sim.

When Lainey faces the truth about Sim's character, she thinks of her relationship with him over the years. When he does come back, Lainey knows how to deal with him. And also the fact that her cooking has been paying. She also finds new friends.

This is a growing of age book. With lots of hand written recipes, it was a pleasure to read this book. At places, it does sound a bit out of place and Sim's character should have been clearer to Lainey much before this, But considering Lainey is 17 year-old, it makes sense too. Overall, it is a pleasurable read, not serious but a light one. And YA readers will love this book.

And I recently read Mare's War by the same author and loved it. That is an entirely different from this.