Fri, August 31, 2012
Populazzi by Elise Allen Review
Populazzi
By Elise Allen
Publication date: Aug. 1, 2011
Harcourt Children’s Books, 400 pages
Source: Publisher
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.
— Goodreads.com description
Woooo can Elise Allen write a good flirting session! As soon as Cara met Archer, I was in love. Their quick exchanges of dialogue were smart, silly, sweet and just…perfect. Archer was everything you wish you’d found in a boy when you were a teen.
But I knew it was too good to be true. I mean, I was only 10% through the book. This “first potential romance” bliss I was feeling was bound to be short-lived.
And it was. Oh! The sorrow of the “girl meets boy, things get confused, girl loses self in quest for popularity, everything she touches begins to explode” plotline! It’s so darn good, but it’s so hard for me to focus because I just want to skip ahead to the good parts, aka anything involving Archer. And I was SO angry with Cara and her choices.
All in all, this story was a darker, more upsetting and, honestly, stretched-out than I anticipated, but the light, flirty goodness at the beginning guaranteed I’d stick around for the a payoff. Elise Allen lost me for a bit, but she really did nail that part. I’d definitely read more of her books.
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About Me
I read. A lot. Mostly whatever YA novels the library has on hold for me that week. Sometimes grown-up books if my book club makes me.
Currently Reading
Jessica Darling's It List #1: The (Totally Not) Guaranteed Guide to Popularity, Prettiness & PerfectionBy Megan McCafferty
OMGGGGGG!!!!!!!!!!!!
juhina said:
oh no.. too good to be true. I really don’t enjoy books about girls and their desperate need to be popular. Great review, but I think I’ll be just as angry as you if I read it and I don’t need any more anger in my life!
juhina recently posted..Review: Speechless by Hannah Harrington – Farah
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Posted on: Fri, August 31, 2012
We Heart YA said:
Ooo, “darker, more upsetting” is kind of appealing, actually, because the title and cover make this book seem fluffy. Thanks for sharing your observations!
We Heart YA recently posted..Why are there so few siblings in YA literature?
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Posted on: Fri, August 31, 2012
Alexa @ Alexa Loves Books said:
This actually sounds like it’ll be pretty fun to read! I’m glad there’s a bit more substance to it though, because the cover is kind of misleading…
Alexa @ Alexa Loves Books recently posted..TGIF (38): Choose Your Next Read
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Posted on: Fri, August 31, 2012
Jen said:
Well, well… I actually like the darker parts of YA. So this sounds like something I should give a whirl!
Jen recently posted..My Thoughts: A Million Suns by Beth Revis
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Posted on: Fri, August 31, 2012
Elise said:
Thanks so much for the review, Anna! I’m glad you’re on board for more books!
xo,
E
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Posted on: Fri, August 31, 2012
Allyson said:
This cover kind of reminds me of Jane By Design (sad that that was canceled… Anyway, great review, this book seems more than your average contemporary YA, I’ll be sure to put it on my wish list ;D
Allyson recently posted..Review of Divergent (Divergent Trilogy #1) by Veronica Roth
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Posted on: Fri, August 31, 2012