Ever wonder who was the first kid to keep a wallet on a big chunky chain, or wear way-too-big pants on purpose? What about the mythical first guy who wore his baseball cap backwards? These are the Innovators, the people on the very cusp of cool. Seventeen-year-old Hunter Braque's job is finding them for the retail market. But when a big-money client disappears, Hunter must use all his cool-hunting talents to find her. Along the way he's drawn into a web of brand-name intrigue- a missing cargo of the coolest shoes he's ever seen, ads for products that don't exist, and a shadowy group dedicated to the downfall of consumerism as we know it. Distributed by Syndetic Solutions, Inc.

A teenage male Trendsetter (one who spots trends and makes them "cool") for a shoe company wants to introduce an Innovator (one who invents trends) peer to his boss-but the boss has disappeared and foul play is suspected. PW's starred review said, "this entertaining adventure doubles as a smart critique on marketing and our consumer culture." Ages 12-up. (Sept.) Copyright 2005 Reed Business Information. From: Reed Elsevier Inc. Copyright Reed Business Information

Gr 7-10-Scott Westerfeld's intriguing novel (Razorbill, 2004) is a thriller that involves teenagers who aspire to be the first to discover a new, cool fashion trend. Seventeen-year-old Hunter Braque, a native New Yorker, aspires to be one of the trendsetters, and when he accidentally stumbles on a cache of pristine, vintage sneakers in an abandoned Chinatown building, Hunter's life takes a number of twists and turns. While the book's main idea is engaging, Westerfeld's writing is not. The characters, despite their apparent coolness, do not strike either a sympathetic or absorbing chord with listeners, especially Hunter, who annoyingly speaks a sort of non-brand doublespeak (he can't bring himself to mention a product's brand name, so he invents a roundabout substitute name). Actor Scott Brick's narration is adequate, but fails to compel or draw listeners into the story. While the tale that combines mystery, satire, and love story might entertain listeners, young adults interested in a satirical, utopian novel would be better served by M.T. Anderson's Feed (Candlewick, 2002) or Aldous Huxley's classic, Brave New World.-Larry Cooperman, Seminole High School, Sanford, FL Copyright 2006 Reed Business Information. 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. --Gillian Engberg Copyright 2004 Booklist From: Syndetics Solutions, Inc. Distributed by Syndetic Solutions, Inc.