Chasing Boys

When El Marini started at her new high school, her mum’s advice was, “Mind your manners, listen to your teacher and don’t chase boys.” And then life got complicated for El – her father left and she fell in love with the gorgeous-but-taken Eric Callahan. So what happens when everyone around you is moving on and you’re standing still? Chasing Boys is a dark-edged and funny young adult fiction novel by Australian author Karen Tayleur. This insightful coming-of-age story about friendship, crushes and growing up was long-listed for the 2007 Gold Inky Awards. For more fantastic YA, read Karen’s other books: Six, Hostage and Love Notes From Vinegar House. Visit her online at www.karentayleur.com “Tayleur has managed to inject her story with just the right balance of angst and humour, carefully teasing out the intricacies of the adolescent experience.” The Canberra Times “The core of adolescence is captured beautifully in this book … The insights into the mind of a teenage girl in senior high school are woven into a believable story, which takes the reader on a journey which will have you both laughing and crying: humour and pathos blended together skilfully to make this a compelling read. Highly recommended for readers aged 14+.” Reading Time magazine “Chasing Boys reads like a diary without being in the format of one … All the ingredients of El’s life are blended seamlessly, never downplaying the audience’s intelligence, as Tayleur captures the all-consuming nature of a teenage crush without making El ridiculous. Moody, poetic, and intimate, this book is billed as the ‘romance for girls who don’t like pink,’ but is much more than that.” Booklist “The prose is crisp and minimal, the chapters are short and sharp, the narrative sustains interest by incorporating flashbacks and humour while progressing the plot at an impressive speed – it will therefore be an especially good choice for reluctant readers, or those with ‘better things to do.’” Bookseller+Publisher “This book is beautiful. I wanted to read it again as soon as I’d finished the last page.” Cath Crowley, multi-award-winning author of Graffiti Moon