Lucky Girl

by Jamie Pacton, Jesse Vilinsky (Read by)

Overview

A hilarious, poignant reflection on what money can and cannot fix.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781662085529
Publisher:	Dreamscape Media
Publication date:	07/13/2021
Edition description:	Unabridged
Product dimensions:	6.04(w) x 5.04(h) x 1.13(d)
Age Range:	12 - 18 Years

About the Author

Jamie Pacton is an author of young-adult and middle-grade fiction who has both a bachelor's and a master's degree in English literature. Throughout the years she’s spent pursuing her dream of being a writer, she’s also worked many weird jobs—pen salesperson, art-museum guard, pool attendant, lab assistant, bookseller, nanny, waitress, and more—and now teaches English at the college level. She currently resides in Wisconsin.

Jesse Vilinsky is an accomplished voice actor and improviser. She received her bachelor’s degree in theatre from the Universityof Southern California and trained and performed with the prestigious British American Drama Academy in London. An alumnus of The Second City Training Center in Hollywood, she co-wrote and performed in two acclaimed original sketch comedy shows there. She has lent her voice to numerous projects, and she relishes any opportunity to breathe life into a character.

Editorial Reviews

Lucky Girl is for every person who has ever felt unable to help those they love, stuck and yearning for a better life, and unwilling to give up on themself - or others.”
-Noelle Salazar, USA Today bestselling author of The Flight Girls

“With heart, humor, and honesty, Lucky Girl explores what it truly means to have enough. Jamie Pacton has written another smart, relatable heroine readers will rootfor to the last page (and beyond!).”
—Joy McCullough, author of Blood Water Paint

“With a fresh take on the many forms of love and grief, Pacton brings readers a unique dramedy about a girl and her lotto ticket.”
—Jennifer Dugan, author of Hot Dog Girl and Verona Comics

From the Publisher

04/01/2021

Gr 8 Up—Jane might just be the luckiest girl alive. At least, that is what people might assume after a throwaway dollar turns into the sole winning ticket for a $58,643,129 lottery jackpot. But things are never so simple. Jane technically bought the ticket when she was a minor, which means she needs to get an adult to claim the money for her. She could give it to her mom, but ever since her dad died, her mom has started collecting other people's junk. Jane's ex-boyfriend is legally an adult, and he seems to want to get back together—maybe he is an option? Meanwhile, Jane has to keep everything top secret because her best friend Bran is determined to figure out who in their small town had their life changed by a lucky ticket. Jane is a relatable protagonist and the reasons for her drawn-out decisions are logical (if sometimes frustrating). Her relationship with Bran holds the book together while also centering a strong platonic friendship across genders. Pacton falters a little in her handling of Jane's mother's mental health—Jane struggles to talk to her mom for so long that it feels unlikely that one conversation would push them so far down a healing path. Jane is white and bisexual and Bran is Korean. VERDICT A sweet, thoughtful, and quick romp, perfect for readers wanting some laughs while also looking for answers to some of life's biggest questions about love, death, self-worth, and, of course, money.—Annamarie Carlson, Westerville P.L., OH

School Library Journal

2021-05-27
Financial fortune isn’t always fun.

Seventeen-year-old Fortuna Jane Belleweather just won the lottery: specifically, a $58 million jackpot. Bewildered would be an understatement. Her mother’s been playing the lotto religiously for five years—one of the many habits she picked up in her grief over losing Jane’s dad. Jane just purchased a ticket on a whim. Two weeks shy of turning 18, she’ll need to convince a trusted adult to claim the winnings or be guilty of a criminal misdemeanor. Her hoarder mother is not an option; neither is her nonmaterialistic hippie grandma. Unfortunately, Brandon Kim, her best friend, is also 17—and he’s determined to figure out who the lucky winner in their small Wisconsin town is. Could her jerk of an ex-boyfriend be the answer? Not if she can avoid it. Excerpts from Jane’s journal, The Big Book of Lotto Winner Fails, document unlucky winners’ experiences and offer insights into her inner thoughts. Media clips and social media posts, like the Lakesboro Community Facebook group and Bran’s Instagram, show the growing buzz and obsession in town. Pacton captures her protagonist’s anxiety and the deliberation with which she approaches her dilemma. A fast last act ties up the various threads but leaves some emotional arcs underexplored. But readers will find in Bran and Jane’s dynamics a welcomingly strong, supportive friendship. Jane is White and bisexual; most characters are White, and Bran is Korean American.

An enjoyable story of family, friends, and failed first love. (Fiction. 14-18)

Kirkus Reviews