Camo Girl

Camo Girl

by Kekla Magoon

 

Ella and Z have been friends forever, both of them middle-school outsiders in their Las Vegas suburb. Ella is the only black girl in her grade and gets teased for the mottled colors of her face. (Her deceased father was white.) Z is the classic “weird kid” who maintains an elaborate—and public—fantasy life, starring himself as a brave knight. Though Z is content with his imagined world, Ella wishes for a larger group of friends, so she’s thrilled when Bailey, another black kid, arrives at their school. He’s popular and wants to befriend Ella—but to join the cool crowd, Ella would have to ditch Z. Does she stay loyal to the boy who has been her best and only friend for years, or jump at the chance to realize her dream of popularity? (description from Amazon.com)

Though somewhat formulaic and with a few one-dimensional characters, this was a quick middle grade read that easily addresses a very important topic.  Ella has trouble accepting her racial identity because it literally is written all over her face and is commented on every day.  She is biracial and has mottled skin, allowing some bullies at school to tease her mercilessly.  It is not until another black student, one who becomes very, very popular, comes to her school and stands up for her, that her classmates see how hurtful they were being, thus allowing Ella to begin to find self-acceptance.

This book was easy to read and enjoyable.  It directly addresses a problem that many kids face today, self acceptance and discrimination.  There is definitely an audience out there for this book.

Full disclosure: Borrowed from my library

Populazzi Blog Tour and Giveaway!

Populazzi
by Elise Allen

Cara has never been one of those girls: confident, self-possessed, and always ready with the perfect thing to say. A girl at the very top of the popularity tower. One of the Populazzi.

Now, junior year could change everything. Cara’s moving to a new school, and her best friend urges her to seize the moment—with the help of the Ladder. Its rungs are relationships, and if Cara transforms into the perfect girlfriend for guys ever-higher on the tower, she’ll reach the ultimate goal: Supreme Populazzi.

The Ladder seems like a lighthearted social experiment, a straight climb up, but it quickly becomes gnarled and twisted. And when everything goes wrong, only the most audacious act Cara can think of has a chance of setting things even a little bit right. (description from Amazon.com)

A mostly hilarious (only slightly cringe-inducing) roller coaster ride through the rungs of popularity! Wow. Elise Allen nailed the clique scene at most high schools. You've got the populazzi (also known in popular culture as the perfects/the plastics/the elite/the upper eschelon), your cool outsiders, your cool club based cliques, your not so cool club based cliques, your fringe kids, and your dorks. Yup. It's all there and it's all realistic. I was amazed how quickly this book threw me right back in to my high school years...hence the cringes.

Allen's writing is fresh and fun. The cringes were all due to my memories, not the story, I promise! Though there are moments when I felt bad for Cara and her best friend Claudia...they just want to fit in sooo badly. I've totally been there. It takes a lot of guts to stand out and just be yourself. I have to say that some of my favorite characters in the book were the kids who just did that. They were just into what they were into and they didn't care what anyone else thought. Kudos! If we all could be that self possessed in high school the world would be a much better place!

Anyway, Cara's journey up the ladder to the populazzi is fun to read, funny, and rings totally true. The dialogue works, even in the quirky discussions where Shakespeare is sprinkled in, or kids randomly drop into song. The interactions between the teens absolutely reminded me of my high school years, including the embarrasing moments... I loved how Cara sees and experiences all different sections of the high school experience before figuring out where she really feels comfortable. It was a fun journey.

Want to climb the rungs of popularity to mingle with the populazzi? Enter to win a free, finished copy of Populazzi! Leave me a comment with your name and an email address before Monday, August 22nd. On Tues., August 23rd, I will randomly choose a winner and contact them for their address (must be US/Canada only per publisher, sorry!). Good luck!!!

Full disclosure: review copy received from publisher