Trust No One

Gr 7 Up–It’s first thing in the morning, and Ben Hamer is crossing the street to school from the student parking lot when he’s hassled for jaywalking by Police Captain Richardson. The captain thinks the worst of Ben because his father is a thief, now in prison for the fourth or fifth time, but this interaction leads to another right afterwards. New girl Abigail, who likes the way Ben handled himself with the cops, gets flirty and sets up a date for the following day. The date turns out to be “mudding,” skidding Ben’s car around in a field until it’s caked with muck. After a makeout session in the car, Abigail insists he drive her to a nearby strip mall, where she produces a very realistic looking water pistol from her backpack and proceeds to knock off a liquor store. She then takes off on foot, leaving him to take the heat with his easily identifiable, muddy car. Much of the story details Ben’s day and night as a fugitive, with him ending up at the home of best friend Nick, who convinces him to have a talk with rookie cop Thomas Lin. The three of them set up a dubious sting that outs Abigail and clears Ben’s name. This novel by award-winning YA author Bass (Graffiti Knight) includes some brief romance and a sprinkling of coarse language, but the text is middle school– and high school–appropriate and is written at a second-grade reading level. Ben and Abigail are cued white; Nick’s family is Greek.