Includes bibliographical references (p. 137-143) and index.

Child and teen tobacco abuse / Scholastic -- Lies about smoking and secondhand smoke / Robert A. Levy and Rosalind B. Marimount -- New smokeless tobacco products are the same old killers / Stephen Jay -- The antismoking hysteria / Joe Jackson -- Big Tobacco targets youth, minorities, and women / American Heart Association -- Teenagers imitate characters on the big screen / Suzanne Batchelor -- Tobacco ads seduce teens / Kathiann M. Kowalski -- Anti-teen-smoking ads make cigarettes desirable / Christopher Lee -- Genetics and mental disorders lead to tobacco use / Patrick Zickler -- How do teens get their cigarettes? / Jessica Kuehne -- Hip-hop images cause minority youth to start smoking / Associated Press -- Quitting smoking makes me sick / Susan Shapiro -- Don't turn smokers into criminals / Shawn -- I love smoking, but not enough to do it -- Anna Pickard -- I might die early, but at least I'm cool / George Meluch -- Ten things quitters should avoid / Terry Martin -- Parents are the best prevention / Barbara P. Homeier and Neil Izenberg -- Curbing teen smoking / Dave Hitt -- Youth tobacco cessation / Micah H. Milton -- Schools can help students fight tobacco / Meg Gallogly.

Presents essays that offer different opinions on teen smoking, discussing such topics as the reasons why teenagers begin smoking, the harmful effects of smoking, and strategies to prevent smoking among teenagers.