On the Subject of Unmentionable Things

Description

A girl rewrites sex education, one viral post at a time, in this fiercely honest and delightfully awkward novel from the award-winning author of Words on Bathroom Walls. Phoebe Townsend is a rule follower . . . or so everyone thinks. She's an A student who writes for her small-town school newspaper. But what no one knows is that Phoebe is also Pom-the anonymous teen who's rewriting sex education on her blog and social media. Phoebe is not a pervert. No, really. Her unconventional hobby is just a research obsession. And sex should not be a secret. As long as Phoebe stays undercover, she's sure she'll fly through junior year unnoticed. . . . That is, until Pom goes viral, courtesy of mayoral candidate Lydia Brookhurst. The former beauty queen labels Phoebe's work an "assault on morality," riling up her supporters and calling on Pom to reveal her identity. But Phoebe is not backing down. With her anonymity on the line, is it all worth the fight? Julia Walton delivers a brutally honest novel about sex, social media, and the courage to pursue truth when misinformation is rife. Who knew truth could be so scandalous?

JULIA WALTON is the author of the award-winning Words on Bathroom Walls and Just Our Luck. She received an MFA in creative writing from Chapman University and BA in History from UC Irvine. Julia lives with her husband and children in Huntington Beach, California. Follow her on Twitter and Instagram at @JWaltonwrites and visit her website JuliaWalton.com.

"An essential, sex-positive volume." --Publishers Weekly "Already known for dealing with complex subjects with grace and honesty, Walton creates in Phoebe, best friend Cora, crush Neil, and eventual boyfriend Jorge real, imperfect characters with genuine emotions and actions. Through the medium of Phoebe's blog posts and tweets, Walton also manages to include a tremendous amount of useful information about sex." --Kirkus Reviews "A sex-positive read that spotlights the importance of sex education and information. Give to older YA readers who enjoy contemporary realistic fiction with a message." --School Library Journal