This scrapbook-style novel charts the friendship of Lydia Goldblatt and Julie Graham-Chang as they embark on a quest to study the behaviours and tastes of the 'popular' girls so they can join their ranks in Secondary school. They scheme together to invent their first crushes, go to great lengths to obtain a mobile phone, and save each other from major embarrassment. When Lydia starts to become friends with the "popular" girls she's forced to choose between them and Julie. The Popularity Papers figures in the centre of an epic Secondary school power struggle. Their story is genuinely funny and good-hearted with a wealth of funny details. As they write their own story, their friendship evolves in touching and relatable ways.