Reviewed by Nicki Laskowski

Middle School: First crushes. School dances. Lockers. Hormones. Mood swings. Standing out. Fitting in. Standing out while fitting in. We've all made it through our 'tweens, that part of our lives between elementary school and high school, between the desire to cuddle with our parents and the drive to be independent. We've all made it through, and even if given the chance, most of us would never go back. But not Linda Perlstein.

In her first book, not much just chillin', Perlstein steps into the hallways and classrooms of a middle school in suburban Maryland. There she immerses herself for a year in the lives of several students who are experiencing the pitfalls and peaks of their 'tweens. She gains intimate access to private conversations between best friends, and to the notes passed back and forth through class. And when Perlstein asks "what's up?" these students respond with more than "not much just chillin'," a phrase they use on instant messenger. They tell her who they're crushing on now, the way they really see their parents even when they rebel, their fears about mortality, how freaked they are to lose a best friend to someone else -- thoughts so hidden that usually only a diary is privy to this information.

Panning across the entire backdrop of the stage upon which these 'tweens act out their lives, Perlstein focuses on the parents who struggle to figure out when to let go and when to push for more. She delves into the fashions that make middle schoolers cool, the advertisements now directed at this lucrative age group, and the music that pounds through their headphones. The result is a riveting cultural study of 'tweens.

Perlstein writes with such sensitivity and tenderness that she provides a depth to her characters and shows that, while they are just kids, these struggles are real. Middle school will never become an easy transition, but not much just chillin provides any reader with a key to unlocking the mysteries of this world. Open the cover. Let Perlstein take you back.