1. Danny's Dilemma
Authors: Christine DeVault and Bryan Strong
Illustrator: Robert Ransom
First Published: 1987
ISBN: 0-941816-31-1
Length: 74 pages (plus "About this Book" notes)
Number of Endings: 6
Library of Congress Summary: The reader tries to help Danny make
decisions about using tobacco and shares with him the consequences of each
decision.
My Thoughts: The first thing that struck me about this book (and
actually this series in general) was the artwork. It's technically
well-executed and attractive, but it's at the same time very artificial and
goofy-looking. Interestingly, the text matches the art quite remarkably; the
writing quality is technically high, but the content all seems a little
forced. Use of third-person writing doesn't help matters much. Obviously,
the book is well-meaning, and the many forms and consequences of tobacco are
addressed, but the unconvincing attempts at capturing teen slang and behavior
tend to undercut the message. Fortunately, all of its flaws make the book a
fairly humorous and entertaining read; if you can watch and enjoy the
educational shorts on Mystery Science Theater 3000, you'll probably
enjoy this book. Really, for what it is, the book is fairly successful; my
biggest complaint is that it suffers from "cut-and-paste" syndrome;
a lot of the text is duplicated exactly in multiple sections. I would have
been more impressed with the design if a clever means of avoiding this
repetition could have been found.
2. Serena's Secret
Authors: Christine DeVault and Bryan Strong
Illustrator: Robert Ransom
First Published: 1987
ISBN: 0-941816-32-X
Length: 80 pages (plus "About this Book" notes)
Number of Endings: 7
Library of Congress Summary: The reader tries to help Serena make
decisions about drinking alcohol and shares with her the consequences of each
decision.
My Thoughts: This is probably the best (and thus least
unintentionally amusing) book of the series. While it definitely lacks
subtlety from time to time, it doesn't go too far over the top in terms of
writing or illustration. The book uses the same setting (Rosemont High) as
the previous volume, and Christy, the main character of the next volume,
shows up briefly in this one. The most notable thing about the book's game
design is the fact that the reader actually makes choices for two different
characters: Serena and her would-be boyfriend, James. This is somewhat
interesting, but, combined with the third-person writing, it really distances
the reader from the roles of the characters, making the consequences of the
choices less thought-provoking than they might have been in a first-person
book.
3. Christy's Chance
Authors: Christine DeVault and Bryan Strong
Illustrator: Robert Ransom
First Published: 1987
ISBN: 0-941816-33-8
Length: 69 pages (plus "About this Book" notes)
Number of Endings: 4
Library of Congress Summary: The reader tries to help Christy make
decisions about using marijuana and shares with her the consequences of each
decision.
My Thoughts: This book definitely has the silliest artwork of the
series, and for this I consider it wonderful -- I laughed aloud at several of
the pictures. None of this humor was intended, but it was nonetheless
appreciated. The book itself is very short, but with long sections; there's
not a whole lot of interaction here, though it does manage to allow the
reader to make decisions for two different characters, just like the previous
book. The storyline is probably the most interesting of the series,
involving the filming of a movie during the main character's vacation. Since
it's not just a "drugs in school" story, it feels more like a
"real" gamebook with drug-related themes than a gamebook entirely
about drugs. This is definitely a good thing, though it doesn't entirely
save the book from its flaws.