Simon Pulse; 2009
Overall Grade: A
How does a self-proclaimed and universally-acknowledged geek girl get to be one of the most popular kids in school? Join the cheerleading squad, naturally. If it sounds strange to you for a geek to wear an insanely short skirt, show off her mad split skills, and flirt with the star of the basketball team, then you're already in agreement with Bethany, the main character and hilarious narrator of The Geek Girl's Guide to Cheerleading. She tries out for the squad to please a friend--but she never expected how actually making it would change her life, her relationships, and herself. And whoever thought those cutesy ditzes worked so hard?
From the perspective of someone who's spent a lot of time in the geek world, I can vouch that Charity Tahmaseb and Darcy Vance ship have got their main character and her very funny geek friends right on. I can't personally verify the cheerleader aspect, but the portrait the authors paint of both worlds are exceptionally believable and tangible. I could say to read this book for the great humor...or for the character development and relationships and friendships...or just for the insight into the world of geekdom... But really you should just read it because it's a fabulous, fresh, and funny story that will bring out the inner geek in all of us.
Literary Quality: B
Plot: B (It's a character book, but there are some nice twists)
Voice: A
Originality: A
Descriptive Ability: A
Humor: A+
Illustrations: n/a
Believability of Characters: A
Believability of Situations: A
Overall Reading Enjoyment: A+
Possibly objectionable topics*: language, moderate sensuality and references to sex, underage drinking (not engaged in by the protagonist; viewed as very dangerous)
2 comments:
I loved this book. I agree that the humor and characters were priceless.
I really enjoyed the Geek Girl's Guide! Sadly, however, I don't feel comfortable recommending it because of the preview from the very offensive book, "Giving Up the V" by Serena Robar which is included at the back of the book. Talk about objectional material! Even my 19-year-old and 23-year-old daughters were seriously upset by Robar's chapter. It should never have been included in Tahmaseb and Vance's beautiful book!!
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