Roberta Ritter hopes to be a journalist one day, but for now she's stuck working at her family's arcade in a dilapidated shopping mall. From her vantage point behind the counter, she sees all the goings-on at the mall - and some things she sees are disturbing. Racism, dirty politics, and drugs are all part of the scene. Roberta doesn't like it, but she's just a fifteen-year-old - so what can she do? Roberta is surprised to find out just how much power she does have. To hone her journalistic skills, she begins to investigate hate crimes at the mall. In the process, she uncovers some shocking information concerning her own mother's death. And as she learns to stand up for herself and the truth, Roberta becomes the kind of person who makes things happen - a crusader.

 

 

There are 492 pages in this book.

It is aimed at Young Adult readers. The term Young Adult (YA) is used for books which have the following characteristics: (1) aimed at ages 12-18 years, US grades 7-12, UK school years 8-15, (2) around 50-75k words long, (3) main character is aged 12-18 years, (4) topics include self-reflection, internal conflict vs external, analyzing life and its meaning, (5) point of view is often in the first person, and (6) swearing, violence, romance and sexuality are allowed.

This book was published in 2007 by Harcourt Children's Books .

EDWARD BLOOR is the author of four acclaimed novels. A former high school teacher, he lives near Orlando, Florida.