What's the Book About?

SHIFTY is a contemporary young adult novel set in San Francisco. Fifteen-year-old Shifty drives illegally, swipes court documents and lies to police and social workers--all in an effort to stay out of trouble. Shifty parks in a handicapped zone and fast-talks his way out of a ticket by convincing the cop that an old homeless woman is his grandmother. He drives off without a ticket, but with a new pretend grandma in the back of his van. Now his younger foster sister has very opposing views of what to do with their new fake grandma. Both funny and tender, Shifty's misadventures touch on themes of resiliency, home, and lost and found family. And it all begins with a $275 burrito!

Praise for SHIFTY:

"Witty, fast, makes you think."
-- Sam, 16.

"Nicknamed Shifty, Soli has had to use his survival skills for so long that he has a hard time leaving the streets behind when he lands in his new foster family. When he is confronted with the realization that his new foster mother actually trusts him, he has to decide whether to take advantage of her ... Soli's good intentions are thwarted by both his own poor judgment and external trials. This combination of personal flaws and situational difficulties create a realistic story that resonates. Smart writing and an engaging narrative keep the story fresh, while an interesting plot will keep readers turning the pages.
(Fiction. 12 & up)"
--KIRKUS REVIEWS ( August 15, 2008)

"Soli, aka 'Shifty,' survives by his wits. His 15-year-old narrator's voice will carry readers through this chronicle of four days in the lives of his San Francisco foster family ... Hazen (Mermaid Mary Margaret) creates fully formed characters here, and through Soli's narration, the audience witnesses firsthand his resourcefulness and rationalizations ... when a cop starts to issue a ticket, he conveniently finds an elderly lady in the shop whom he calls 'Mama' and who happily accepts a lift. Soli is out of a jam. Or is he? Hazen has a gift for turning humor into poignant situations devoid of sentiment ... the realistic relationships between the four foster family members, their ability to believe in each other in a world where each of them has already had more than their share of bad breaks and Soli's survivor-humor make these characters memorable."
-- SHELF AWARENESS (Jennifer M. Brown)

"In deceptively straightforward prose, author Lynn Hazen brings Shifty's San Francisco world to life on the page. Original, telling details, a compassionate eye, and Hazen's intuitive understanding of how love and trust can save us make SHIFTY a book to treasure."
--Alison McGhee, Author of several novels and picture books, including #1 New York Times bestseller SOMEDAY

"... Written with heart and compassion, SHIFTY is a fun and fast-paced read. Readers will be rooting for Soli from page one, indignant at the judgmental people he is forced to put up with and sympathetic to the hardships that he is forced to endure. Lynn E. Hazen reveals a world that most readers could never have imagined, and Soli is an optimistic and courageous character that readers will identify with..."
--TEENS READ TOO (Reviewed by: Amber Gibson)
Rating: 5 Stars

"...the characters have warmth, and readers will feel empathy for this makeshift family."
--SCHOOL LIBRARY JOURNAL (Reviewed by Nichole King)

Buy SHIFTY at Amazon

cover illustration © 2008 by Tim Marrs

Lynn talks about her inspiration for SHIFTY and her writing process...

I had this teen character named Shifty lurking around in my imagination. He was driving without a license and arguing with a young girl. Who were they? Where were they going? And what were they arguing about? At first I kind of hoped they'd go away because Shifty was clearly a teenager, and I wasn't sure I wanted to write a YA novel.

Then (for real) I observed an older woman in a parking lot pushing her leashed cat atop an airport baggage cart--miles from any airport. When I saw her again--cat, cart and all--heading for the showers inside the women's locker room of a 24 hour gym, I couldn't help wondering who she was and where she was living.

I jotted some notes (because these characters were not going away). Drawing from memories of kids I'd met years ago while working at a summer camp for children and youth in foster care, I wrote a dialogue between Shifty and a young girl named Sissy. Then I began to weave together elements of their story, the old woman and her cat, and the universal need for home.

I know it sounds weird, but I feel as if all the characters in SHIFTY wanted me to create them--they wanted me to tell you their story.

I wrote intensely for about six months, capturing a first draft. Then I expanded and revised the story for two more years. At first
I worried my novel might be too bleak or depressing because it dealt with foster care and homelessness, but as I kept writing I discovered Shifty (and Sissy's) world was filled with humor, heart and hope.

About the Author

Lynn E. Hazen's middle grade novel, Mermaid Mary Margaret (Bloomsbury 2004), was hailed "a winner" by Kirkus Reviews. Lynn has written a picture book, Buzz Bumble to the Rescue (Bloomsbury 2005); and two young chapter books, Cinder Rabbit and
The Amazing Trail of Seymour Snail (Henry Holt 2008 & 2009).

She earned an M.F.A. in Writing For Children and Young Adults at Vermont College, an M.A. in Education at San Francisco State University, and a B.S. in Applied Behavioral Sciences at U.C. Davis.

Lynn lives with her family in San Francisco. SHIFTY is her first young adult novel. www.LynnHazen.com

Tricycle Press

SHIFTY will be published in Fall 2008 by Tricycle Press. Here's what publisher, Nicole Geiger, has to say about SHIFTY...

Please take a look at the opening pages of SHIFTY.