The Queen Bee of Bridgeton

The Queen Bee of Bridgeton
by Leslie DuBois
Dancing Dream series, book one

When fifteen-year-old Sonya Garrison is accepted into the prestigious Bridgeton Academy, she soon discovers that rich girls are just as dangerous as the thugs in her home of Venton Heights. Maybe more so. After catching the eye of the star, white basketball player and unwittingly becoming the most popular girl in school, she earns the hatred of the three most ruthless and vindictive girls at Bridgeton. Can she defeat the reigning high school royalty? Or will they succeed in ruining her lifelong dream of becoming a world class dancer? (description taken from Amazon.com)

This was the story of a driven, passionate girl who hopes that her dancing can take her out of the ghetto. Sonya is a strong, compassionate, hopeful girl...and a great character to read about. Her motives are always clear and honorable, her passion for dancing is palpable, and her longing to be accepted and loved is heartbreaking.

Sonya begins to dance at age 8 and by the time she is 16, her dream is to attend a prestigious dance school in Rome to help her career as a professional ballerina. The dancing scenes were lovely, full of terminology, but never confusing, and solidly illustrating how devoted Sonya is to her dancing. Even when she begins dating a very intriguing boy, she never truly loses sight of her dancing dreams. Her passion even inspires those around her to become better people.

The juxtaposition of the Bridgeton Academy and Sonya and Sasha's roach-ridden apartment life in Venton Heights perfectly illustrates why both Sonya and Sasha have developed into the girls that they are, both driven to leave the ghetto behind, and why they will never truly be accepted at Bridgeton if anyone learns of where they live. It's sad to realize that race is still an issue and it's good that those feelings, of not being white enough, of not being black enough, are explored in books like this one. It really made me smile when Sonya realized that not everyone would judge her because of where she grew up...that she could be accepted for exactly who she was as a person. :)

I cannot wait to see what happens to Sonya next - where her dancing can truly take her!

Full disclosure: E-book provided by the author for review

Zombiekins

Zombiekins
by Kevin Bolger

The little town of Dementedyville is as boring as they come--but a mysterious stuffed animal is about to liven things up . . .

Stanley Nudelman buys Zombiekins at the yard sale of his neighbor, the Widow Imavitch. It looks cuddly and creepy-cute--but expose the TEDDY OF TERROR to moonlight, and strange things happen. . . .

When Zombiekins gets loose at his school, Stanley finds himself in GRAVE danger. Because if his teacher Mr. Baldengrumpy discovers he turned the whole school into zombies, Stanley will be in detention till he's, like, 80!

Can Stanley and his best friend Miranda save their schoolmates from eternal zombiefication? If not, will Mr. Baldengrumpy even notice? (description taken from Amazon.com)

This is my kind of Halloween horror story. More funny than really scary. (I'm a chicken sometimes, I know!) This tween-aged zombie book is Diary of a Wimpy Kid meets Gremlins.

Zombiekins is scary cute. He's a little creepy, but you want to cuddle him...expose him to direct moonlight, though, and he just might BITE you! Poor Stanley inadvertantly creates a zombie making machine that swiftly turns his whole school into a monster haven.

The illustrations by Aaron Blecha fit the book perfectly and had me snorting aloud. Stanley is a great character that learns to stand up to a bully. His best friend is a strong female character and his little sister made me laugh. The depictions of snotty kindergarteners, scary six graders, and awkward, mean teachers will definitely appeal to readers.

I cannot wait to check out the next book, Zombiekins II: They Came From Under the Bed. I think it will be another hideously funny adventure!