Saving Maddie by Varian Johnson Grades 10-12 240 pages Delacorte March 2010 Hardcover     Joshua is the typical preacher’s kid - or maybe not. When most teenagers would be rebelling against living in the shadow of the preacher, Joshua seems to revel in it. He’s a good kid who doesn’t get involved in drinking or drugs and believes that premarital sex is wrong, even though he knows that a lot of his friends do it. Joshua leads the church youth group and tries to maintain a balance between the status quo that pleases his father and the hip-hop changes that his peers want to see. The only weakness that Joshua has ever had is Maddie. They were best friends at fourteen, when both their fathers were involved in the church leadership. When Maddie and her family moved away, the two agreed to write each other every day. Maddie answered Joshua’s letters for a little while, but then the letters stopped. So Joshua isn’t expecting to look across the church congregation four years later to see Maddie sitting there as though she never left. But Maddie did leave, and the Madeline who Joshua sees in the church today isn’t the same young lady he knew four years ago. Joshua’s friends see that, and Joshua’s parents see that – but to Joshua, Madeline will always be his Maddy. Whatever he can do to help her find her way back becomes Joshua’s mission. This well-told story of teenagers battling peer groups, stereotypes, well-meaning adults and a host of other issues will appeal to this age group. It will be an easy thing for the reader to identify with the characters and the plot.     web reviews   Joyce Rice/2011 for curled up with a good kid's book   For grown-up fiction, nonfiction and speculative fiction book reviews, visit our sister site Curled Up With a Good Book (www.curledup.com)