Dirty Laundry

by Daniel Ehrenhaft

Book Overview

The school: The Winchester School of the Arts, nicknamed "The Laundromat" because it's where better boarding schools send their "dirty laundry."The girl: Carli, a gorgeous, pigtailed Hollywood actress... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0061131032
• ISBN13: 9780061131035
• Release Date: December 2008
• Publisher: Harper Teen
• Length: 229 Pages
• Weight: 0.80 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.9" x 5.7" x 8.3"
• Age Range: 12 to 17 years
• Grade Range: Grades 7 to 12

Customer Reviews

Courtesy of Teens Read Too

Carli Gemz is going undercover. She's off to the Winchester School of the Arts to get into character for her upcoming TV series, Private Nights. She will have the son of the creator, Fellini Udall Newport (aka FUN) at her disposal as her personal assistant. Fun has no desire to be the slave to Carli, whom he has to refer to as Sheila Smith, her character's name. Being her assistant is part of the arrangement his father has made with Headmaster Stanton to keep Fun at Winchester. Fun should've been kicked out for his graffiti art around campus. Instead, his girlfriend, Charity, was expelled for getting caught in the male dorm. Life is not fair. Senior year starts out with the news that Darcy Novak, the basic do-gooder of the senior class, has gone missing. Fun's roommate, Nails, used to date Darcy and may be a suspect in her disappearance. Also in question is Darcy's most recent boyfriend, Kirk Bishop. Kirk's family has donated enormous amounts of money to Winchester, and he is able to get away with just about anything. When Fun and Carli meet, they actually form a bond and the two decide to investigate Darcy's disappearance, each for their own reasons. As they stumble through the first part of the school year, the mystery around Darcy grows. More of their acquaintances come under suspect, and the two no longer know who they can trust. Told in alternating voices, Fun and Carli reveal their thoughts to the reader as they try to figure out what happened to Darcy. They both have their own issues to work through, but they come to rely on each other as they days pass and the mystery is no closer to being solved. DIRTY LAUNDRY bounces back and forth between the two characters. At times it was hard to keep track of who was doing the talking, but overall, the story was intriguing. Mr. Ehrenhaft was able to keep the intrigue surrounding Darcy's disappearance cleverly hidden up until the final few pages. Fun and Carli were both creative characters with quirky personalities, but it would be nice to see their characters develop even more in a follow-up story. Reviewed by: Jaglvr

Hilarious and smart

Winchester School of the Arts is the Laundromat of East Coast boarding schools. When teens have dropped out--or have been kicked out--of every other reputable prep school, Winchester is where they go. It's also where unsuspecting Carli Gemz, a young actress, is sent by the producer of her new TV show to get some real life experience with boarding school living. What she doesn't know is that she's also being sent there to give the producer's son, Fun, one last chance at redemption before he gets himself kicked out. Both are surprised to find that the school's golden girl, and possibly the most normal person there, Darcy, has gone missing. Carli is intrigued and can't fight the urge to look for her, and Fun is dragged along, making for a humorous and puzzling adventure. Dirty Laundry is a nicely engaging combination of wit, mystery, and a dash of romance written in the form of alternating narratives between Fun and Carli's unique voices, which can be a difficult feat, but one that Ehrenhaft pulls off flawlessly. The characters are presented in such a way that everything Ehrenhaft discloses about them--from multiple points of view, their own dialogue, and their actions--only reinforces the genuine vibe Dirty Laundry gives off. The diverse and realistic characters are the key element that grounds the rather far-fetched plot from seeming too cheesy and unrealistic and adds to the quirkiness and overall charm of the entire novel. The seriousness of the missing girl and the possibility that her abductor lives among the teens is carefully balanced by the underlying wit and humor that is present throughout the entire novel. The only deterring aspect of the book was the slightly rushed conclusion, but overall Dirty Laundry is a hilarious and entertaining read reminiscent of the works of John Green and Jaclyn Moriarty's The Murder of Bindy Mackenzie, and is easy for the reluctant teen reader to get immersed into. Ehrenhaft has created a winner.