Subtitled How I Fell For The Wrong Guys, this light-hearted tale shows us Mercedes Bennion seeking summer work in Utah, aged seventeen, and answering the only ad which doesn't require certifications. The Youth Conservation Corps wants young people willing to camp. She'd be living at a Brighton ski resort, which makes her more interested, and there's a possible biology credit, enough to allow her to graduate. Her best friend Conor Perry gets the same job, so they're all set... despite the snow.

MY LIFE AS A LUMBERJACK involves wearing steel-toed hiking boots, hard hats and jeans, and toting a sleeping-bag. The other young people applied for the job ages ago. All of the girls have a crush on the team leader, a Forest Service man, so maybe it's not just the extra three thousand feet of altitude which makes Mercedes feel dizzy. On their first day, they have to cross steep shale mountainsides, looking for unexploded shells which have been fired during winter for avalanche control. By the end of the day, her blisters have blisters. The food is plentiful, and the chatter is lively, and they go home for the weekend, to rest in Mercedes's case. Away camp is a change of scene - seeding bare grasslands in the foothills. The Forest Service men are even better looking, and clearly the outdoor life has a lot going for it. Mercedes gets to fire a rifle, among other outdoor skills, and learns about tree felling. All her lessons are put to the test however when two boys break the rules and put everyone in serious danger....

The amount of actual lumberjacking is slight compared to the chatter around tables or on hikes, but all the teens learn a lot about the outdoors and develop new skills. Our heroine is not too sure of herself, gets embarrassed easily and shares her dreams with people who gossip. At that age we all make mistakes. The long-suffering Forest Service rangers must be used to teen crushes and cope admirably with everything from injuries to fear of snakes. The book doesn't seem to have a direction, except to recount the summer's adventures, but a lot of wisdom is gently passed on by author Sara Olds and Mercedes knows herself a lot better by the end of summer. I enjoyed MY LIFE AS A LUMBERJACK which shows young people that there is more to concern themselves with than popularity and fashion, and outdoors can mean fun and adventure.