The Disreputable History of Frankie Landau-Banks (by E. Lockhart)

Young Adult Novel (contemporary)
15-year-old girl, main character
Rating: Can’t put this book down!

Short, short summary: Frankie Landau-Banks, a sophomore, attends a boarding school where she is IN LOVE with a senior, Matthew Livingston. Although Matthew is dreamy and an okay boyfriend, he is much more involved in his secret society and his guy friends. This drives Frankie crazy–mostly because the guys think she is adorable, and they underestimate her ability to do or think anything. But Frankie is not to be underestimated! She devises a plan that has these guys under her control, and they don’t even know it.

So, what do I do with this book?
1. E. Lockhart has an amazing voice in this book, and it is written in third-person. This is a wonderful book to use for teaching voice or for teaching third-person vs first-person. One activity you can easily do is have students write a new ending to the story in Frankie’s first-person voice.

2. This book can also be used for character education discussions. Different characters show different types and quantities of loyalty in this book. What does it mean to be loyal? How far should loyalty go? Another great discussion topic with this book is honesty. Should you always be 100 percent honest? Is honesty the best policy–especially in relationships?

3. Problem solving–Frankie has a problem, and she decides to solve it in a sneaky, unconventional way. You can debate this issue by dividing students into groups–some defending Frankie and her choices and others coming up with new ways to solve her problem.