I Was a Teenage Popsicle

Floe Ryan awakens after ten years in a cryonics chamber.  Her terminal illness has been cured, but everything about her former life in Venice Beach has changed. Her parents have been frozen as well, and her sister is her new guardian. Her big sister - who used to be her little sister, is in charge of her life. And while Floe is still a teenager, her sister is married now - and has a baby.

Luckily there is Taz - a teenager who was frozen the same time she was.  He is the only one who can understand what she is going through. Trouble is, Floe is going to be attending a different school, far from Venice Beach, and since she's not allowed to tell anyone what happened to her, fitting it is a huge challenge. She's ten years behind everyone else, and she feels totally clueless.

I picked this book up at the library where I work, when I was going through a list of books that hadn't been checked out in a couple years.  I wasn't sure why this one had been sitting there for so long.  It looked kind of cute, so I thought I'd save it from being discarded and bring it home to read.

It was a cute book, and I think the narrator's informal, slightly snarky voice would be appealing to many teen readers.  I had a few issues with it, though.  Ten years just didn't seem like quite enough time for Floe to be having such substantial difficulties adjusting to the new time period.  Very little seemed to be different - just the computer organizers that the kids were using, which seem a bit archaic compared to some of the apps that are available now.  It read a bit like science fiction written by someone who doesn't read much science fiction.  The plot also relied a bit too much on coincidence for my liking.  I doubt most teen readers would take issue with these two things, and I did enjoy the concept of the book.  Floe is a strong protagonist, and readers will root for her as she strives to find a place for herself in the future that is now her present.

I Was a Teenage Popsicle by Bev Katz Rosenbaum (Berkley Jam Books, 2006)