Backlash

Backlash by Sarah Darer Littman, 325 pages

Lara has suffered from depression since junior high.  Now in high school, she is getting her life on track.  She has some good friends, she just made the cheerleading squad, and she's starting to feel a little bit better about herself.  Then a boy starts chatting with her online.  Christian is sweet and funny and seems to think that she is really pretty.  He's even hinted at asking her to his school's dance.  Then he posts something horrible to her public wall on Facebook, telling her she's a terrible friend, that he'd never want to go to the dance with her, and that the world would be better off without her.  So, Lara tries to kill herself.  The rest of the book is about the aftermath of her attempted suicide.  Told from the points of view of different people, including Lara, her younger sister, Sydney, Lara's former best friend and neighbor, Bree, and her younger brother, Liam, each person tells the story through their own eyes.  I thought this was a terrific story about online bullying and every teen should read it.  Teens who like realistic fiction will want to read this.