GLITZ

In this fast-paced young adult novel crackling with attitude and authenticity, two best friends go on the fantasy road trip of a lifetime with their favorite hip-hop star.

Ann Michelle is tired of her boring, sheltered life. She longs for something real. Then she meets Raquel Marissa Diaz-Raq for short. Sassy, streetwise, and totally fearless, Raq is everything Ann Michelle isn't. She has a voice to die for and the attitude to go with it, and she'll stop at nothing to be a star. All Ann Michelle wants is to go along for the ride. Even if that means leaving home to go on the road with Piper, both girls' favorite hip-hop artist. And shedding her identity along the way to become Glitz, a bolder- but not necessarily better-version of herself. Crackling with authenticity, energy and heart, GLITZ is about the true meaning of friendship and the pitfalls of fame. It's the perfect book for a teen who wants the flavor of an urban fiction without the gratuitous sex, drugs, and violence, yet with a larger message about the importance of staying true to yourself. Philana Marie Boles is the author of Little Divas, a chapter book for readers ages 11 and up, as well as the adult novels In the Paint and Blame It on Eve. She has worked for 40 Acres & a Mule Filmworks, Spike Lee's Brooklyn-based film company, for Glamour magazine (as a media relations assistant), and as a substitute teacher, which she often refers to as her "favorite gig of all."
When Philana isn't writing, she works as a media consultant and image strategist for hip-hop and R & B musicians. Glitz is her first young adult novel, with two more coming from Viking. She lives in New York City.