Reader reviewed by Dede

Kate is the preachers daughter and struggles to be the good Kate that every one expects her to be.  She has a bad Kate side to her that she feels at times.  Kate is getting ready to graduate and she only applied to one college, MIT, because that is where her mother went to college and it's the only place she wants to go.  (Her mother died years ago)  Kate is popular and outgoing, the total opposite of Teri, who is an angry outcast and a thief and takes care of her little brother and out of sync mother after her father was jailed for beating her mother up.  I didn't like Kate's character very much at the beginning, but as she grew outside of her comfort area and looked at the world through other people's eyes, I began to feel more for her.  When her letter from MIT arrives and it's a rejection, she panicks and feels like her life is over.  When Teri's house burns partially down, Kate's dad takes Teri and her little brother in until volunteers can fix up their house.  Kate slowly gets to know Teri better and starts to understand her.  Then a catastrophe happens which opens up a whole new reality for everyone.  Kate runs alot starting in the beginning of the book and it's interesting to learn why.  This book will make you look at things differently.  It may have been even more powerful if the author would have switched perceptions/stories from Kate to Teri after the catalyst happened, but this is still a very powerful book. 

Reader reviewed by Hillary

Catalyst is one of my very favorite books. It was written by the author of Speak, Fever 1793, and several other books. Her most recent book is Twisted which I am not so patiently waiting for it to be released in paperback. Darn books, why can't they all just be the same?

This book is about a high school girl named Kate Malone. Throughout the book, she's waiting to get her college acceptance letter from her first, and only, choice college. All of a sudden, something horrible happens and everything changes. Her entire lifestyle gets a total makeover and she doesn't take it very well. She still tries to keep up her grades, life, and sanity but everything seems to be falling apart. By the end of the book she seems to have gone through so much emotional turmoil that a normal person would have checked themselves into a hospital but she seems to hold it all together pretty well. The ending to the book tied it together quite nicely in my opinion.

The book was wonderful. I could really relate to the main character. She was very likable. I would recommend this book to anyone looking for a more serious book to read. Though it isn't a mainly funny book, it had some moments where I couldn't help but laugh, no matter how weird it looked. I liked it so much that I made my sister read it. She enjoyed it too, even though she doesn't normally read that much.

Reader reviewed by Matt Hill

In this novel, Kate Malone, a high-school senior, a minister's daughter, and an excellent scholor & scientist, has been waiting and waiting for acceptance into MIT - the school that her mother, now deceased, went to. But, in the midst of all this, her enemy's barn and house caches fire, and her father takes the family in, much to Kate's dismay. But, as far as problems with Teri are concerned, she eventually gets to know her better, and they reconcile, if only for a little while! I highly recommend this book to anyone, especially if you are in high school, or deal with the college acceptance stress a lot. This is a great read; go out and get it today!

Reader reviewed by Megan

Overachiever Kate Malone has one major wish for her senior year: to be accepted at MIT, the only school she applied to. However, she didn't expect for her neighbor's house to catch fire... or for her worst enemy Teri Litch to have to move in with her family. Once she finds out that she was rejected from MIT, she almost falls apart... until a huge tragedy puts her life into a better perspective. Laurie Halse Anderson delivers a stunning novel once again.

Reader reviewed by linda

From the author of "Speak" comes a story about a "good girl" who's only wish is to get into MIT. Kate loves science and was hoping MIT would ignore her horrible entrance essays and allow her in but things don't turn out the way she expected them to. Her father is a preacher and feels that it is his duty to offer their house to a teen and a child whose house has burned down. Unfortunately the girl is Kate's enemy and though they don't really become friends in the end, Kate helps her go through a very tragic time in her life. Kate realizes that there's more to life than MIT.

Reader reviewed by The Lit Chick

i like this book because it tells the inside story of a braniac like kate. so she's smart, but that doesn't mean life for her is an easy ride or a sure thing. laurie halse anderson uses her signature first person view and that gives readers insights into kate's minds. so the emotion's there.

Reader reviewed by artemis

I can't believe I wasted my time with this book. It's very slow and the plot takes forever to develop. It wasn't interesting in the slightest bit and a found the girl who Kate decides to take in very cruel. It was predictable, unrealistic and similar to others I've read on this subject. So glad I borrowed it from the library.

Reader reviewed by FxOxG

Catalyst by Laurie Halse Anderson was not too interesting to me yet it may be different to you. I read the book because I thought Speak was amazing yet was a little let down.
Catalyst is about Kate Malone who stresses about getting into the college of her choice. She applied to MIT and no other, now she must deal with the stress of her every day life and the worry of not getting accepted to her dream college.
I reccomend it to some people because soem of my friends did enjoy it yet it might be too boring for some.

Reader reviewed by Nicki

Kate is a preacher's daughter and a high achiever in high school, particularly in math and science. All her friends are also high achievers; her boyfriend got into Harvard. Kate's dream is to attend the Massachusetts Institute of Technology where her dead mother went. She applied only to that school and was devastated at her rejection. At the same time, one of Kate's childhood enemy's house burns down, and the bully and her family move into Kate's house. She has to cope with all of this and figure out what to do with the rest of her life.

Reader reviewed by BoogerCoatBrady

Catalyst was awesome, I loved how it opened with her running at night. It was so sad how her mom died, and she nor her dad wanted to talk about it, but her brother wanted to know all about it.
It was really nice of her family to share their home with someone whose house had burnt down.