The Astonishing Adventures of Fanboy and Goth Girl    by Barry Lyga Order:  USA  Can Houghton Mifflin, 2006 (2006) Hardcover, CD     Reviewed by Lyn Seippel A comic book freak and A-student, Fanboy's life as an outcaste is merciless. When he's not avoiding jocks or being pushed around by jocks, he is treated like he is invisible by everyone else. His home life isn't much better. He calls his mother's husband the step-fascist. Six years after their move to the neighborhood his mother keeps telling him he'll make friends - it just takes time. Fanboy gets through his days by fiddling with a bullet he found in the step-fascist's workshop and keeping a list. The list, which he started in middle school, is a compilation of people who have pissed him off. Fanboy does have one friend who shares his interest in comic books. He and Cal instant message and email each other, talk on the phone, and sometimes even hang out away from school. But Cal is a jock and while at school, he steers clear of Fanboy. One of ten black kids at the high school, Cal's popularity is based on being an athlete, but he's not secure enough to give the others any reason to turn on him. Fanboy meets Kyra, the Goth girl, after she witnesses him being brutalized in gym class. She can't understand how he could just sit there and be hit, but she thinks his ability to take it is noble. Fanboy knows different, but he likes her explanation. At first their friendship is based on their dislike of everyone else at school. Kyra would like to take out ninety percent of the school population including the faculty. Fanboy has never voiced this desire, but fantasies of a gunman coming in and shooting up the place are part of his shield along with his bullet and the list. Fanboy and Goth Girl are two lonely outsiders who give each other courage. Kyra is Fanboy's opposite; a risk taker, a rule breaker, and instead of striving to be invisible, she stands out in her goth attire. Lyga paints the picture of two very different adolescents who have always lived outside their teenage society. Note: Opinions expressed in reviews and articles on this site are those of the author(s) and not necessarily those of BookLoons. Find more Teens books on our Shelves or in our book Reviews