Well! I just flew through Book Five of 18 Pine St., this groundbreaking multicultural YA series from back in the day.

Not only is it my favorite book in the series so far, but it's also got my favorite of the book covers. The colors, the hair, the clothes, the classroom setting, the characters' facial expressions: If it doesn't all shout "American high school kids in the 1990s," I don't know what does. That picture looks like it could have been snapped right smack in the middle of a '90s sitcom.

I also got a nostalgic kick out of other signs of the times in the story, like the school's excitement over equipment for their Media Center: a brand new overhead projecter! And a girl being able to make an excuse to end a phone conversation with a guy, saying her mom needs to use the phone now.

The telephone, y'all. Those home phone lines for the whole family to share!

Some parts of the story effectively made me go "hmmm," like one of the brainy characters pointing out how Murphy High's alumni will come back to support the school for something like a promising basketball season, but they don't do the same when the school wins a science fair or a math contest. There's also a serious romantic crush I didn't see coming, a minor family crisis, a breakup (of sorts) that kind of broke my heart, and an ending to the main plot that I found to be a shame.

In a good way. Because the ending shows the kind of unfortunate thing that really does happen. Still, the conclusion isn't too downbeat, given the usual gang of friends and plenty of 18 Pine St. pizza involved.

Yup. My favorite read of the series so far. ( )