Red Velvet Crush

Gr 9 Up—Meredith here explores the tentative steps of first love and the complicated relationship some siblings share. Teddy Lee reluctantly agrees to join the rock band her brother Winston, who loves a get-rich-quick scheme and never finishes what he starts, forms after he plays her demos to his record station boss. Soon she's dating the drummer, Ty, and within a few months their cover band (the titular Red Velvet Crush) pulls together a summer tour of the Pacific Northwest. Still, she feels that she's in the shadow of her younger sister, Billie, who always steals the spotlight—including the spot of singer in the band when Teddy Lee chokes at an early practice. The phrasing is sometimes clunky (e.g., a tree-lined street is described as a "leafy arch of sabers"), and despite the band being on the road and Teddy Lee writing songs with Ty, the book focuses much more on finding one's place among siblings.