Escaping to NYU for college didnât turn out the way Cameron plannedâheâs flunking his theater classes, about to lose his scholarship, and he still hasnât found anyone he can call his âpeople.â When he gets home for winter break, heâs so desperate to avoid a Conversation with his dad that he takes the first acting job he can getâas a mall elf. Despite how Scroogey he feels, the plus side is that thereâs a cash prize for the most festive of Santaâs helpers.
But the competition is fierceâespecially from fellow elf Marco. Christmas spirit oozes out of his veins. At first Cam is determined to see him as nothing but a rival, but as they spend more time together, Cam starts to second-guess himself. What if heâs finally found his people hereâin the fakest consumerist nightmare place on Earth, where he least expected it?
David Valdes is the author of the young adult novels Spin Me Right Round (a New York Public Library Best Book for Teens) and Brighter than the Moon as well as three nonfiction books, including Today Show "Top 10 Holiday Books" pick A Little Fruitcake. His plays have been produced coast to coast and abroad. As a columnist, he has written for the New York Times, Boston Globe, and HuffPost. He lives outside Boston with his teenage daughter.