Lily becomes friends with "ghetto girl" Hazel at their private boarding school high school and it affects them both. I love how Koja takes you into their world.
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I'm not usually much for boarding school books, but I couldn't resist the jacket copy on this. And I'm glad I didn't. It's written with a breathless immediacy that rings true and overcomes some odd plot holes. I liked it. A lot. ( )

Reviewed by Jaglvr for TeensReadToo.com

Lily Noble has been attending the Vaughn School since pre-K as a day student. She has been discontent with her life there. To try to appease her, Lily's parents decide to let Lily be a boarder at school sophomore year. Thinking the change will help Lily's restlessness, Lily moves into the dorm. She is stuck with a roommate that has severe allergies and is overwhelmed with the pressures of life at Vaughn.

Lily notices the new girl, Hazel Tobias, in her Lit class. Hazel speaks out to the teacher in an argumentative tone, something Lily would never think to do. One evening while Lily is hanging out with her friends, Hazel approaches her, looking for a cigarette. When Lily encounters Hazel alone late at night in the dorm common room, the two start a hesitant conversation.

From that one conversation, the two form a friendship that the rest of Lily's friends can't comprehend.

Lily has gone through the motions of life at Vaughn. Even before Hazel's arrival, Lily was dissatisfied with her current situation. Her mom went to Vaughn and her dad never said much about her schooling. But once she gets to know Hazel, as much as Hazel will let her in, Lily starts to define herself. She questions her relationship with her boyfriend. She confronts her so-called friends. She changes her accessories.

Hazel doesn't want to be there, but on the surface, she seems to embrace the world that is Vaughn. But when Lily goes home with Hazel on Christmas break, she gains more insight into who Hazel really is.

The book unfolds during the course of the girls' sophomore year. Jumping back and forth from the end of the term to the current month, the reader gets a glimpse of the struggles going on in Lily's head. The reader has to wonder if the changes Lily goes through happened because of Hazel or simply coincided with her arrival. ( )

Summary: Lily Noble has always gone to private school. In her sophomore year, a misfit named Hazel shows up and makes Lily rethink the way she’s been doing things her whole life.

Review: The back-and-forth nature of this book took a little time for me to get used to. The chapters alternate between snippets from the beginning of the school year and the end of the year. A few times, I got confused about whether it was a “later” chapter or a “before” chapter, but I chalk that up to my own work-induced lack of sleep during the week I was reading this one.

I liked that this book doesn’t hit you over the head with what Lily’s feeling. You have to work out on your own what’s going on with her.

I also liked how Lily—who’s always just gone with the flow—finally changes course and questions the ways of her affluent world.

Not a standout for me, but still an enjoyable read. ( )

Not your typical boarding school tale of hook-ups and hijinx, Headlong is the story of Lily Noble, a lifer at Vaughn - a school known for its “Vaughn Virgin” social elite. Lily has always fit in with the girls at school - the pretty ones with perfect grades and wealthy families. But then Hazel comes to Vaughn on scholarship, bringing her alternative family, her hot cherry licorice, and punk-rock style. Soon Lily is drifting away from her old friends, and as she spends more time with Hazel, she comes to realize she’s never truly known herself.

This coming of age story will surprise you, with characters as malleable and honest as real teenagers, and poetic writing perfectly in touch with the experience of finding one’s identity. Headlong will stay with you long after you’ve put the book down, and it is an absolutely worthwhile experience. ( )