Alicia is so obsessed with being popular, she does things that would shock her parents, if they knew. Hector is aware the gang that wants him to join may be the death of him, but he will not decline. Sam was a baseball star, but can't play the sport he loves anymore because he is wracked from football injuries, a sport his father will not let him quit. They are just a few of the teenagers that readers will meet, in this candid book authored by a 34-year veteran high school teacher. Voted Teacher of the Year and Coach of the Year, Bruce Gevirtzman shares with us the results of his years spent talking with teenagers about topics from life and lust to depression and death. Revealing honest, poignant words shared in conversations, classroom talk, interviews, surveys, and journals, Gevirtzman takes us inside the minds of today's youths, and also contrasts them with teenagers of decades past. Topics include teen thinking and secrets on issues from sex, drinking, and drugs to peer pressure, self-imposed standards, and beliefs about what is important, and painful, in life.Including interviews with fellow teachers, Gevirtzman's book is threaded with one recurring truth: Sadly, instead of parents and teachers and lawmakers and the public looking out for our kids, today's kids are largely left to fend for themselves, he concludes. Not only will general readers and educators find great insight in this work, it will be of interest to students and scholars of adolescent psychology, clinical psychology, and social work.

A veteran high school teacher experienced with more than 8,000 students takes us on an absorbing journey, close-up with teenagers sharing their loves, hates, fears, fantasies, pain, pressures, dreams, and desires.

PrefaceIntroductionChapter 1: Im, Like, AllChapter 2: The Rebel ParadoxChapter 3: Mirror, MirrorChapter 4: Lily Munster Or Whatevers CoolChapter 5: The Anti-Midas TouchChapter 6: Dumb StuffChapter 7: Athletes, Arrogance, and AngstChapter 8: The Slime Who Hurt Our KidsChapter 9: When Party Became a VerbChapter 10: Snitchin Aint BitchinChapter 11: Hard Bodied, Soft Headed, and Stone DeadChapter 12: Sex, Oral Sex, and What Is IsChapter 13: Devouring JunkChapter 14: They Bombed Hiroshima, Didnt They?Chapter 15: Good and PlentyChapter 16: You Vil Go to Havid!Chapter 17: You Mean, When You Die, Youre Dead?Chapter 18: Its a Matter of Philosophy: Remedies x 10Chapter 19: Cant! Wont! Not!Chapter 20: When All Is Said and DoneNotesBibliographyEnd Notes