Klepto Review

PUB DATE: May 2004

This is Lori’s first young adult novel and her very first book published.

THE COVER:

Lori mentioned on her website (http://www.lori-weber.com/) that the cover of this book was revised three times to get it just right. The first one was a cd cover, inside a pair of fingers with a picture of a girl on it. The second one was a girl holding out her hand getting ready to snatch something and finally the third one and the one you see here is the one they chose.

MY REVIEW
This was a quick and fast read. I enjoyed reading it. I have to say that I love reading books that happen within your areaor a area you know about. Although Lori never really says where its happening but you can almost imagine from the description (Tim Horton’s) and by street names (Boulevard St Jean) that is happening right in the area. Is it?

The main character is Kat. She is your typical teen-ager. The only thing different is that she is a shoplifter (not all typical teens are that) and she has it mastered down on how not to get caught. She knows how to act and where to go so that no one suspects what she is doing.

Kat’s parents are clueless to what their daughter is up too. They are so wrapped up in getting the house redone and ready for Kat’s sisters Hannah’s return home to even notice Kat and what she is doing and not doing. Hannah is older then Kat and is currently living in a home for troubled teens. Hannah was sent there after getting caught delivering drugs.

As the parent’s get ready for Hannah’s return Kat isn’t so excited about the return because she thinks that Hannah will be the same as she was when she left. We discover that once that sisters had the ideal sister relationship but then it turned into an abusive one. Kat had the bruises and the ripped clothing to prove it. As the reader we never witnessed the abuse but only heard about it when Kat spoke of it.

Kat only began shoplifting when Hannah was removed from the house. It was only small things that Kat would take. Its only when Kat hears that Hannah will be able to return home that she panics and begins to steal bigger things like a sweater or a music book.

One day at school Jess comments on Kat’s sweater and Kat tells her she stole it. Jess convinces Kat to steal one for her and she does promising that Jess can’t tell anyone but she does and before she knows it Kat is being asked out by a cute guy named John. He wants her to steal some cds. With John waiting at the bus stop for her she begins to take the cds but realizes she has been spotted she panics and drops the cds and runs for the bus. John isn’t happy when she tells him she didn’t get them. He tells her she is useless. When word gets out that the date was a failure John makes up lies telling everyone he had to stop her from stealing.

No longer feeling in control Kat goes to the mall with her friend Anita. While in the store Kat begins to steal anything and everything. Then Anita and her have an argument and Kat looses it. Just as she is about to step outside the store she grabbed by the store security. This is Kat’s worst nightmare. What will her parents do?

Thankfully Hannah is home when the store calls the house and she comes to rescue Kat. Kat has no idea that Hannah is there to pick her up. Hannah talks to Kat on the way home about what it was like for her being a the home with the other kids and the kids who were there. Hannah realized that she was spoiled. She wanted to change and was sorry for what she did to Kat. Kat begins to see her in a new light.

Will she be able to forgive Hannah? What will her parents say when they find out about Kat’s shoplifting?

If you are interested and want to buy the book you can go here: http://www.amazon.com/Klepto-Sidestreets-Lori-Weber/dp/1550288369/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1243275704&sr=1-2