Candor by Pam Bachorz

Oscar Banks has everything under control. In a town where his father brainwashes everyone, he's found a way to secretly fight the subliminal Messages. He's got them all fooled: Oscar's the top student and the best-behaved teen in town. Nobody knows he's made his own Messages to deprogram his brain. Oscar has even found a way to get rich. For a hefty price, he helps new kids escape Candor, Florida before they're transformed into cookie-cutter teens. But then Nia Silva moves to Candor, and Oscar's carefully-controlled world crumbles.

This book is a lot like The Stepford Wives, except with kids instead of wives. It is disturbing on so many levels, and incredibly intriguing on many more. I loved it.

Oscar’s dad has created this ‘Pleasantville’ type town where all the kids have been brainwashed into behaving like perfect little angels. And if any of them rebel, there’s a special place where they go for ‘rehabilitation.’ It’s lazy parenting taken to the extreme. I can see the advertisements now: “Got a kid who talks back? Doesn’t listen? Has no respect for authority? Don’t bother taking responsibility for your own parenting styles, or even try to make the situation right by stepping up to the plate. Instead, bring him to Candor! We’ll brainwash your kid into becoming the model student who obeys orders, won’t have sex, and will even wash your socks.” It’s all so *wrong*, and I could not tear myself away from this book.

Oscar is one of my favorite kind of characters. He starts out just like his dad—greedy, selfish, and only concerned with making things go his way. But when Nia moves to Candor, everything changes. He changes. It was wonderful to watch him grow from someone who wouldn’t lift a finger unless something was in it for him, to someone who would make the ultimate sacrifice for the sake of another. Definitely recommended.