Paperback Crush

This was just the blend of nostalgia and criticism that I wanted. I loved revisiting series I loved/forgot about, as well as learning about other series that totally passed me by. I appreciated Moss's mixture of remebering her own faves, observing how they skewed white/abled/straight/upper class/etc, and digging out pioneering books/series that perhaps were less overall popular but were more diverse than Sweet Valley et al.

(I also appreciated her introductory note that she was blending together YA and middle grade series under the grounds that tweens read indiscriminatorily. That was certainly true for me–as a young tween I was definitely grabbing Sunset Island and Sweet Valley High at the same time I was reading BSC books, even though those are NOT aimed at the same age group. I know that was not everyone's experience as a young reader, though!)

The interviews with authors, editors, and even one of the models who posed as Claudia Kishi were great pieces of added information too.