Tyler Miller embodies a tremendous sense of decency that few around him see or acknowledge. At school, he’s been a favorite target for both physical and verbal bullying for years. At home, Tyler’s father thinks he’s a screw-up—his opinion fueled in part by Tyler’s single act of protest against all he’s endured—spraying graffiti on the school, and getting caught. Tyler begins his senior year with a new physique thanks to the court-ordered community service that had him working for a landscape company over the summer. For awhile, it seems as if his reputation as a loser might have changed right along with his appearance, but it isn’t to be. While no longer the victim of physical aggression, Tyler soon discovers that he’s still an easy target—of his peers, the school administration, even the police—when new and ugly troubles emerge.Tyler’s first-person voice is funny, sarcastic, insightful and tender—a reflection of Tyler himself. As the novel progresses, it becomes increasingly clear how hard Tyler has been battling not only depression and suicidal tendencies, but also a rage that grows ever more understandable and frightening as the novel progresses. In this riveting portrait of a teen pushed to the edge, Laurie Halse Anderson writes about a boy who finds the strength to keep from going over. But in his triumph, she also reveals how tenuous the line between reason and reckless abandon can be, and how some kids who fail to hold off despair have been failed by others first. (Age 13 and older)

High school senior Tyler Miller used to be the kind of guy who faded into the background—average student, average looks, average dysfunctional family. But since he got busted for doing graffiti on the school, and spent the summer doing outdoor work to pay for it, he stands out like you wouldn’t believe. His new physique attracts the attention of queen bee Bethany Milbury, who just so happens to be his father’s boss’s daughter, the sister of his biggest enemy—and Tyler’s secret crush. And that sets off a string of events and changes that have Tyler questioning his place in the school, in his family, and in the world. In Twisted, the acclaimed Laurie Halse Anderson tackles a very controversial subject: what it means to be a man today. Fans and new readers alike will be captured by Tyler’s pitchperfect, funny voice, the surprising narrative arc, and the thoughtful moral dilemmas that are at the heart of all of the author’s award-winning, widely read work.