Y.A. Book Provides Encouragement for High School Students

Posted byAuthor Stacy A. PadulaPosted inUncategorizedTags:, , , ,

Written by Sophia Karnolt—Kingston, MA

Sophia Karnolt is going to be a senior at Thayer Academy this fall. She loves traveling and spending time with friends and family. Last year, she went to the Galápagos Islands to help teach English to kids and clear out endangered species from planting fields. In school, her favorite subjects include English and science. She also runs for her school’s track and field team, and she loves the beach.

High school expectations and experiences are different for everyone. It’s a learning experience that challenges each person; you stay true to yourself or fall and get lost. The Right Person, by Stacy Padula, shares the tests some high school students at Montgomery Lake High face as they begin their year. They are faced against social pressures, parties, relationships, and trying to fit in with the popular crowd. This book highlights the struggles most teens deal with as they go through their high school years.

The main character, Chris Dunkin, is involved in a drug addiction and is the life of the party, but he isn’t proud of his lifestyle and wants to change it. Courtney Angeletti, the mayor’s daughter, has high morals and is very involved with God while attending church regularly. Chris sees her as a way out of his substanced lifestyle, but Courtney is fascinated by his bad boy party behavior and reputation. Their lifestyles almost become opposite, as Chris stops partying to focus on his football career and Courtney begins partying with Chris’s friends to fit in. Chris and Courtney’s relationship is important to learn from because not only does it highlight the importance of standing by your morals, but it shows how some people just may not be healthy for each other.

This book mentions the hardest challenges teens are faced. It is very realistic and relatable to someone currently in high school or someone who has graduated. I would recommend this book to anyone beginning high school, in high school now, or even someone who has graduated. In my opinion, the most important lesson in this book is to stay true to yourself.

Synopsis

Growing up in the shadow of two NFL-destined cousins, Chris Dunkin has high hopes for his own future in football. However, a drug addiction threatens to destroy everything he has worked hard to attain. When Chris meets Courtney Angeletti-the mayor’s straightedge Christian daughter-he believes she could be the source of inspiration he needs to overcome his destructive lifestyle.

Courtney, however, has other ideas. The desire to rebel has been tugging on Courtney’s heartstrings for some time, and Chris’s “bad-boy” reputation draws her to him like a moth to a flame. After all, he is a central part of the most popular clique in her high school. Will Chris pull Courtney away from her faith or will Courtney inspire him to overcome his rebellious lifestyle?

Published by Author Stacy A. Padula

Stacy Padula has spent the last 14 years working daily with teenagers as a college counselor, mentor, and life coach. She was named "Top Inspirational Author of the Year" for 2022 by the International Association of Top Professionals (New York, NY). In 2021, she was broadcast on the famous Reuters Building in Times Square as "Empowered Woman of the Year." Her Gripped book series is currently being adapted for TV by Emmy-winning producer Mark Blutman. She is the founder and CEO of Briley & Baxter Publications: a publishing company that donates a portion of its proceeds to animal rescues each month. She has edited and published a variety of titles, including Boston Bruins Anthem Singer Todd Angilly and Rachel Goguen's The Adventures of Owen & the Anthem Singer, LaTonya Pinkard of Netflix's Last Chance U's Nate & His Magic Lion, and former NHL player Norm Beaudin's memoir The Original: Living Life Through Hockey. Stacy resides in Plymouth, Massachusetts with her husband Tim and two miniature dachshunds, Briley and Baxter.