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BOOK REVIEW: The Princess Diaries Ten Out of Ten

It has been a little while since we've heard from Princess Amelia Mignonette Grimaldi Thermopolis Renaldo. In the ninth book we were left wondering as Michael had gone to Japan to work on a robotic arm, Mia and JP were getting together and Genovia was about to become a democracy - thanks to Mia. Oh, and Lilly wasn't speaking to her.

Ten Out of Ten (or Forever Princess in the US) is the final installment of Mia's life. She is just about to turn eighteen, leave school and start college. But which college should she go to? Michael is back from Japan who she absolutely has no feelings for whatsoever. Why is she and Lilly still not speaking? And why doesn't anyone want to publish her book, Ransom My Heart?

I love how Meg quickly gets us up to speed with what has been happening in Mia's life through modern means of communication such as their Blackberry's. It is like Mia has never been away and although she is a lot more grown up, she is still lacking in confidence and a little naive, which is why we like her so much.

It is always worrying for the reader (and the author too, I expect!) when you bring a series of books to an end. You can get it right, which I think JK Rowling did with Harry Potter (well I thought so anyway) or you could end up disappointing fans, which I believe Stephenie Meyer did for many with the final Twilight book.

Since meeting Meg Cabot last year (yes I did!) I found her gorgeous and lovely and developed a mini crush on her. I therefore believe she can do no wrong. However even if I didn't believe that I would still say that Ten Out of Ten (Forever Princess) is a fabulous book. I don't think I exhaled at all whilst reading it. She has definitely left the best one until last.

Now I can breathe normally again.

Rating: 5/5

Like this? Try any Meg Cabot book. There are so many to choose from!

FRIDAY FLICK: Twilight

The film adaptation of Stephanie Meyer’s teen vampire romance novel, Twilight, has been out in cinemas for a while now, but I've been dragging my heels about seeing it. 

I was strangely reluctant to even read Twilight (although I’ve no idea why – given that I was more than happy to follow the adventures of one boy wizard for a decade), but I’m so glad I did.  The book is beautifully, dreamily written and I was instantly hooked.

You see, the real reason I was wary of the film is because I’m now reading Breaking Dawn, the fourth book in the series, and I didn’t want the complex emotional world that Meyer had created in my head to be toppled by a dumbed-down, effects-laden Hollywood version.

Happily, Twilight isn’t like this at all.  It begins with the teenage Bella narrating, just as she does in the book, “I had never given much thought to how I would die....”, as she leaves her scatty mother in hot, dusty Phoenix, and travels to the permanently-overcast town of Forks to live with her father.

Kristen Stewart, with her haunted good looks and wry delivery, is a pitch-perfect Bella – shy, brainy and perhaps more mature than her parents.  There’s a slight cinema verité element to everything – all the dialogue and interactions feel very realistic, from Bella’s gruff reunion with her equally awkward father, to  the various jolts and discomforts of starting at a new school.

But a contrasting romantic atmosphere takes over when Bella meets the pale, enigmatic Edward (again, played to perfection by Robert Pattinson) who compounds Bella’s discomfort by seeming to think that she smells bad.

But when Edward moves at impossible speed to physically stop a van from ploughing into Bella, she decides she needs to know more.  Despite Edward’s warnings that Bella should stay away from him, he’s equally drawn to her. 

Which is when Edward confesses that he’s a vampire – one of a family of vampires who have all taken an oath to avoid human blood. Bella falls for Edward, and you can see why.  The boy can really smoulder (which I noticed despite Pattinson being several millennia my junior...). 

But since Edward thirsts uniquely for Bella’s blood – “you’re like my own personal heroin supply”, he tells Bella - can it ever really be safe to love a vampire?

Twilight is directed by Catherine Hardwicke, who brings her indie documentary-style realism from her previous films Thirteen and Lords of Dogtown, balancing it perfectly with the romance and suspense of the love story and supernatural aspects.  And it's so refreshing to see a novel adaptation that neither ignores the plot nor hamstrings itself by following the novel too faithfully.

There are a few really nice moments - at one point, Edward catches an apple Bella has dropped in lovely reflection of the cover of Meyer's book. Also, there's a scene where he plays piano - an irrational movie pet-hate of mine is when the actor clearly can't play and is just miming, but Pattinson actually plays - in fact he composed some of the music for the film.

All in all I thought it was fantastic, and I’m excited now that Meyer’s second novel in the series, New Moon, is currently in production with both leads on board.  It’s a great compliment to them that I didn’t for a minute think of Kristen Stewart as “the daughter from Panic Room” or Robert Pattinson as Cedric Diggory, because I’m usually such a film nerd.  In fact, I even forgot Pattinson was English. 

I left the cinema on a blissful cloud of gothic romance.  I asked the friend I’d dragged along what she’d thought of it.  She hadn’t read the book, and a lot of her motivation for accompanying me was around the sweets I’d bribed her with.

“Well,” she said.  “It is really a movie for fifteen year old girls.  But I loved it, because I’m a fifteen year old girl at heart.  Aren’t we all?”

My thoughts exactly.

TV News: Dustbin Baby

Jaqueline Wilson's children's book, Dustbin Baby, has been made into a BBC1 family drama to be shown at Christmas time. It stars Juliet Stevenson, Dakota Blue Richards and David Haig. [via BBC Press Office]

The heartbreaking but ultimately uplifting story follows a young teenager called April whose troubled life began in a dustbin – a new-born baby, abandoned and alone, not celebrated, not wanted but discarded and left like so much rubbish in an industrial bin behind a pizza parlour.

Related posts: Jaqueline Wilson Honoured | Anthony Horowitz on "Tw*tgate" |Most Borrowed Library Books

BOOK REVIEW: Engaging Father Christmas by Robin Jones Gunn & My Mother's Wish by Jerry Camery-Hoggatt

Reviewed by Jill Hart

Two Christmas Stories You Can Believe In

I love Christmas. I love the lights, the tree, even the hustle and bustle. But, one of my most favorite things about Christmas is treating myself to a cup of cocoa and a good Christmas story. Some years I'm drawn back to the old standbys like A Christmas Carol or even How The Grinch Stole Christmas. But, this year I have two new Christmas favorites.

The first book, Engaging Father Christmas, is actually the second book in a series by Robin Jones Gunn. (The first book is Finding Father Christmas - my last year's favorite.)

Gunn's novellas are cozy. Set in London, they have everything I need for a heartwarming Christmastime read - love, intrigue and, of course, a happy ending. The books each stand alone, but my recommendation would be to read them together.

In Engaging Father Christmas, the main character, Miranda Carson, is headed to see her boyfriend whom she met the prior Christmas. She's unsure of exactly where they stand and running into a old flame at the train station makes things even more complicated. She's also in town to see her step-mother - a woman who hasn't been able (or willing) to accept her as a true member of the family. She's hoping this trip she'll be able to win her approval and finally have a real family. But, a serious of events casts a doubtful shadow over Miranda's trip and she's not sure she'll ever find a family to belong to.

The second story is My Mother's Wish: An American Christmas Carol by Jerry Camery-Hoggatt. The US is joining the ranks of the Christmas Carol producers and this YA novella is a sweet example. Ellee, a frustrated teenage girl, just doesn't see things the way the rest of the world does. Her controlling mother won't give her a break, even refusing to refer to her as anything but Eleanor (her grandmother and namesake) and comparing her every move to that of her perfect sister.

Ellee finally gets fed up and decides that running away from home is the only way to escape her mother's disappointment in her. She gets more than she bargained for when she finds herself at the Comeback Cafe with no money, no ride and not a friend in site. Lives interwoven is the theme of this book and it's a beautiful picture of how each of us can have an effect on those around us.

Rating: 4/5

Ways To Live Forever Wins Prize

Sally Nicholls' debut Ways To Live Forever which Keris found moving, but also sweet, charming and funny, has been awarded the Glen Dimplex New Writers Awards 2008. [via Booktrade]

The young adult book, about a boy dying of leukaemia, was written when Sally was 23. Her second novel, Season of Secrets, will be out in April next year.

More Book News

BOOK REVIEW: Elsewhere by Gabrielle Zevin

I have recently felt the urge to tidy my house (I think the official word for this part of my pregnancy is "nesting"). Whilst doing so I uncovered Elsewhere by Gabrielle Zevin, a book I meant to review ages ago. I really enjoyed it and so did my mum when I passed it onto her, but it was only when I was researching it yesterday that I discovered this was a young adult book. I am, sadly, no longer a young adult, nor is my mother, proof, if proof were needed that Elsewhere (like many a young adult book) is a book that can be universally adored.

Like Lovely Bones, this is a book about the afterlife. Liz, who was in tenth grade, has been killed in a terrible hit and run accident and wakes up to find herself on a boat, traveling to Elsewhere. Whilst coming to terms with her death, she discovers that Elsewhere is a place very similar to earth - except for one thing. Everyone gets younger.

As I have already said, I adored this book, and I read it at a time when I was coming to terms with the unexpected death of someone in my own family. Whilst Elsewhere is obviously a figment of the author's imagination, I found it sad - yes, but also uplifting and inspiring. It wasn't a difficult read, unlike Lovely Bones, but is gentle, enchanting and beautifully written.

Rating: 5/5

Like this? Try Memoirs of a Tennage Amnesiac by Gabrielle Zevin

BOOK NEWS: Being Nikki

I LOVED Airhead, the first in Meg Cabot's, er, Airhead series.

The second, Being Nikki, isn't out until May 2009, but I thought I'd tell you about it anyway, because I'm excited. Are you? (Read more about it over the cut.)

Related posts: TV & Movie News: Meg Cabot | Meg Cabot interview

Things aren't pretty for Emerson Watts. 

 

Em was sure there couldn't be anything worse than being a brainiac the body of a teenaged supermodel.   

 

But it turned out she was wrong. Because that supermodel could turn out to have a mother who's gone mysteriously missing, a brother who's shown up on her doorstep demanding answers, a former best friend who's intent on destroying Stark Enterprises to avenge the death of his lost love, and a British heartthrob who's written a song about her that's topping the charts.

 

How can Em balance all that with school, runway shows, and weekend jaunts to St. Johns - especially when she's got ex-boyfriends crawling out of the woodwork who want more than just a photo op; a sister who is headed to the high school cheerleading championships; a company she represents that seems to be turning to the dark side...

Not to mention trying to convince the love of her life that models aren't really airheads after all...especially one model in particular.

 

But then, nobody said it was going to be easy being Nikki.

BOOK REVIEW: The Miracle Girls by Anne Dayton and May Vanderbilt

Reviewed by Jill Hart

The Miracle Girls is a sweet novel about second chances. Ana Dominguez has just moved to Half Moon Bay and is doing her best to fit in to her new life. Unfortunately, Riley, the most popular girl in school, has singled Ana out for her own brand of high school torture. When Ana and Riley end up in detention together, Ana is sure things can't get any worse.

God uses this bad situation to bring Ana together with a group of girls (Riley included) who, like her, are living their second chance at life. Ana realizes that they have been brought together for a purpose, but she must now convince the other "Miracle Girls" - maybe not Riley - that their friendship is meant to be.

I really enjoyed Miracle Girls and am already looking forward to the next book in the series. This is the type of novel that is timeless, that I'll want my daughter to read when she hits her teens (or tweens). I look forward to the day when I can share my love of reading - and clean, godly books like this one - with her.

Rating: 3/5

Like this? Try It's All About Us by Shelley Medina

BOOK REVIEW: Let It Snow by John Green, Maureen Johnson & Lauren Myracle

Yes, I know, it's not Christmas yet (not long now, though, you know!), but last week the weather was so miserable and drizzly, I just felt like I needed some Christmas cheer.

And who better to bring Christmas cheer than one of my favourite YA authors, Maureen Johnson, along with John Green and Lauren Myracle?

Let It Snow is three linked stories, all taking place in the same town during the same period - Christmas Eve and Christmas Day.

Maureen Johnson's The Jubilee Express is about Jubilee Dougal, a girl named after a house in her parents' miniature Christmas village. When her parents are arrested trying to buy the latest (limited edition, of course) Christmas building, she finds herself on a train headed to Florida to spend Christmas with her grandparents. And when that train hits an enormous snowdrift and can go no further, she finds herself in Gracetown, subject to the hospitality of a boy she meets in the Waffle House.

The characters in John Green's A Cheertastic Christmas Miracle are desperately trying to get to that same Waffle House to spend the evening with hot cheerleaders (who are also taking refuge from the stuck train). Well, two of them are interested in the cheerleaders (the boys, JP and Tobin), the girl - Angie, known as the Duke - is more interested in cheese-covered hash browns (as was I, the entire time I was reading this story). Due to the overwhelming snow, the trip to the Waffle House takes hours and is fraught with peril (not least from the other boys trying to get to the cheerleaders first), but then things take a romantic turn...

Finally, in Lauren Myracle's The Patron Saint of Pigs, we meet Addie (who we have heard of in both the previous stories). She's recently broken up with her boyfriend, Jeb, and is broken-hearted. And yet she still has a frightening early shift at Starbucks... and a teacup piglet to collect.

I really enjoyed this book. All three stories are wintery, Christmassy, funny, gripping and romantic. I enjoyed Maureen Johnson's the most, mainly because I love her humour, and Lauren Myracle's didn't quite hold my attention (there was an awful lot of chat with Starbucks customers when I just wanted to get to the romance!), but the ending more than made up for it.

I love it when characters cross over in stories and this was done in an incredibly entertaining way. One for curling up with the fairy lights on and a cup of hot chocolate to drink.

Rating: 4/5

Like this? Try Suite Scarlett by Maureen Johnson, Looking for Alaska by John Green or How to be Bad by Lauren Myracle (and Sarah Mlynowski and E Lockhart)

BOOK REVIEW: Maggie Come Lately by Michelle Buckman

Reviewed by Jill Hart

Maggie has struggled for years to make sense of her mother's suicide. She resents the fact that she has had to make up for her mom's absence - doing the cooking, cleaning and other "motherly" tasks. She wonders what it's like to be a normal teenager.

Then her sixteenth birthday arrives. Maggie's birthday wish is that sixteen will be a great year - that she's be pretty and popular and that her brother's best friend (whom she's had a crush on forever) will notice her.

Her birthday ushers in a whole new period in her life, but it's not quite what she expected. Her father gives her a family heirloom as a gift (just the fact that he remembered her birthday is a miracle) and announces that it's time for her to meet the 'special someone' in her life. Then she makes a discovery that will change the course of her life forever.

Maggie Come Lately covers a more serious subject matter than the usual chick lit/YA that I choose. It's a coming-of-age story of a girl who is searching for her place in the world. It's dark at times and yet there is a ribbon of faith that runs through the book and helps to put her struggle in perspective. It's a story of hurt and betrayal, but also one of redemption.

Rating: 4 of 5

Like this? Try Dear Zoe by Philip Beard