Fast Forward to Normal (Brio Girls)

The Brio Girls series is written to churched teen girls ages 12-16 who read fiction. The series deals with hard and ordinary issues―just like all teens face―but does so with honesty and integrity. The catchphrase for this series is “Where real faith meets real life.” With 124,000 subscribers to Brio magazine, Brio Girls is one of the most visible and successful Christian fiction series in the industry.

Reviewed with Lissa Halls Johnson's Stuck in the Sky.

Gr. 6-10. High-school juniors Jacie, Solana, Becca, and Tyler have known each other since fourth grade. With the exception of Solana, they are all Christians, referring to themselves as the Brio Girls, which gives rise to the name of this series. Stuck in the Sky focuses on Jacie, a lively teen with an artistic bent, who becomes involved with a young man who doesn't accept her Christian worldview. Jacie's ambivalence about this relationship is compounded by a growing tension toward a new, very outspoken girl who has just joined the group. In Fast Forward, Becca also has problems with the new girl, as well as troubles at home. Both books refrain from providing pat answers to the girls' problems, and readers will appreciate the evenhandedness of the portrayals as the girls settle their differences and work through their own intolerance. Light, pleasurable fare without a lot of heavy moralizing. Shelley Townsend-Hudson
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