ELA

I'm a real ace at arguing with myself. Take a subject like Tanner Cobb. On the one hand, he stole. On the other, he helped his little brother read and count. Then again, he stole shoes in front of his little brother. But, he brought the shoes back and offered to make up for what he'd done. My mind said, Don't trust him. My instincts said, He might not be all bad.

Sometimes I feel like I have walked into the middle of a movie. Maybe I can make my own movie. The film will be the story of my life. No, not my life, but of this experience. I'll call it what the lady who is the prosecutor called me: Monster.

Ambitious New York City teenager Craig Gilner is determined to succeed at life-which means getting into the right high school to get into the right college to get the right job. But once Craig aces his way into Manhattan's Executive Pre-Professional High School, the pressure becomes unbearable. He stops eating and sleeping until, one night, he nearly kills himself.

Most people think 15-year-old Charlie is a freak. But then seniors Patrick and his beautiful stepsister Sam take Charlie under their wings and introduce him to their eclectic, open-minded, hard-partying friends. It is from these older kids that Charlie learns to live and love.