Hunter Braque, a New York City teenager who is paid by corporations to spot what is "cool," combines his analytical skills with girlfriend Jen's creative talents to find a missing person and thwart a conspiracy directed at the heart of consumer culture. Distributed by Syndetic Solutions, Inc.

Starred Review. Aptly-named Hunter spots street trends for "a certain shoe company named after a certain Greek god." When he meets Jen, he notices her unique shoelaces, and realizes she is an Innovator, a person who invents trends (he's a Trendsetter, someone who is "cool, so when they pick up an innovation, it becomes cool"). Mandy, Hunter's boss, invites Hunter and Jen to do some "original thinking," but when the two arrive at the location, they find only her cell phone and "the coolest shoes we'd ever seen." The pair begins their search for Mandy and the people behind the shoes, before the "bad guys" get Hunter. They depend on other cool hunters, from tech-savvy Lexa to high-society Hillary, to help decipher the clues, and they take risks themselves (going undercover to a posh party, breaking into buildings). There's fun to be had (at the party, rich guests get shampoo samples that turn out to be purple dye), and while readers may lose track of pieces of the plot (or not quite believe the roller skating leader of the underground), they will get swept up in the mystery. Hunter weaves in compelling stories, such as how purple became associated with royalty, and draws a parallel between the spreading of trends and a flu epidemic. (Though the hero refuses to name brands, readers will quickly figure out product names based on his clues.) Ultimately, Westerfeld's (Midnighters) entertaining adventure doubles as a smart critique on marketing and our consumer culture. Ages 12-up. Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. From: Reed Elsevier Inc. Copyright Reed Business Information

Gr 7-10 New York City is the backdrop for this trendy, often surreal novel with a message about the down-and-dirty business of inventing and marketing pop-cultural fads. Hunter Braque, 17, is part of a focus group that views advertisements for shoes. A product gets the nod if it is "skate," but it is more important to point out what might be "uncool." When the teen brings Jen to the next meeting, she spots uncool right away and lets Hunter's boss, Mandy, know. The next day, the woman tells Hunter that the client appreciated Jen's original thinking, and that their help is needed for a "big deal." Jen and Hunter quickly find themselves caught up in a strange turn of events when Mandy disappears. Their search for her begins in an abandoned building in Chinatown and leads to a wild, drunken party at the Museum of Natural History where people are viewing advertisements for a new shampoo. This is a somewhat entertaining story, but awkward phrasing throughout defeats the "coolness," and the scenes involving Hunter's epidemiologist dad slow down the plot. Readers will better appreciate the satire and humor about the consumer world in M. T. Anderson's Feed (Candlewick, 2002), in which the characters are far more realistic. Kelly Czarnecki, Bloomington Public Library, IL Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. From: Reed Elsevier Inc. Copyright Reed Business Information

Gr. 7-12. Like M. T. Anderson's Feed (2002), this hip, fascinating thriller aggressively questions consumer culture. Seventeen-year-old Hunter lives up to his name. A cool hunter, he's paid by corporations to comb his native Manhattan in search of street style that could become the next new trend. Hunter meets and falls for fellow teen culture-watcher Jen, just before Hunter's boss mysteriously disappears. Jen and Hunter hold the most clues, and their wild, increasingly dangerous search uncovers a plot to subvert a consumer system that dictates what is cool. Readers may have trouble sorting through some of the plot's connections and anticonsumerist messages. But Hunter tells a captivating, suspenseful story about how product desire is created, using a first-person voice that is cynical ( magazines are just wrapping for ads ) and precociously wise (he riffs on the origins of everything from the Internet to neckties) while remaining believably naive and vulnerable when it comes to girls. Teens will inhale this wholly entertaining, thought-provoking look at a system fueled by their purchasing power. GillianEngberg. From: Syndetics Solutions, Inc. Distributed by Syndetic Solutions, Inc.