Jackpot ~ Nic Stone

Once again, Nic Stone did not disappoint. She fearlessly and beautifully tackles issues of class, self-worth, personal responsibility, and race in this incredibly engaging novel. 

I truly couldn’t put this book down, and your students won’t want to either. Protagonist, Rico Danger, is a high school senior who lives a very different life than her classmates. Instead of having friends, partying, or participating in extracurriculars, Rico works at a gas station, manages her family’s finances, and takes care of her little brother, Jax. Her mom treats her more like a co-parent than a daughter, and their incredibly fragile financial situation consistently strains their relationship. 

But one day, Rico sells a hundred-million-dollar lotto ticket that wins, and she’s pretty sure she knows who bought it. The problem is, the only other person in the convenience store who witnessed the sale--and remembers the buyer--is Zan, an ultra-wealthy classmate who Rico has never spoken to or wanted to speak to, for that matter. 

Despite this, Rico asks for Zan’s help tracking down the lotto ticket winner, and in the process, develops feelings for Zan, makes new friends, and comes face-to-face with the reality that she may have more choices in life than she was willing to acknowledge. 

Students will not be able to put down this adventurous romance that is full of twists, turns, and valuable life lessons. 

Maturity: 3/4

This novel is ideal for age 13+. This is definitely a young adult book, rather than a middle grade novel, but I’d recommend it to most seventh graders halfway through the year, and certainly grade 8 and up. There is mention of alcohol use and some sexual references, but these topics are discussed very briefly and without detail. 

Pages: 339

Lexile: HL670L

Lexile is a score that helps educators and parents match students with an appropriate text. A Lexile score is a measure of both a child’s reading ability and a text difficulty. However, Lexile does not take into account the content of a novel. So, pairing readers with a text is a complex process, and knowledge of a novel’s themes and plot is necessary to make a high-quality recommendation.

If you are curious about the grade-level equivalent to Lexile scores, check out the conversion chart here!

Happy Reading!

♥ Kara & Riley