POSH AND PREJUDICE

Sassy and spirited British teen Shiraz Bailey Wood is back sporting her hooded sweatshirt and layers of gold chains in this second installment of the Diary of a Chav series. This time Shiraz has hurdled the English academic barrier of the GSCE and is back at Mayflower Academy, which has been transformed from the country’s worst school to a center of excellence. Writing in short diary entries, Shiraz describes how, as she tackles her difficult studies, she is faced with resistance from her family and boyfriend, who aren’t in sync with the new academic Shiraz, and disapproval from her new school friends, who don’t accept her street-wise upbringing. Faced with this impossible balancing act, Shiraz turns inward, painfully examining her own identity and life goals. Packed with British slang, this text requires the included glossary, but Shiraz’s voice and earnestness shine through in any accent, making her an endearing character well worth rooting for. (Fiction. YA)