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Interested in checking out CINDERELLA GEEK?
You can download the e-book FOR FREE from Barnes and Noble,
or for 99¢ from Amazon Kindle!
O P E N I N G H O O K:
The idea grew. It seemed deep and meaningful. At least I thought about it a lot. Then, several things happened, almost too scary, as if they were a part of my fate. The experience pointed out the path that would lead me through. It gave me direction. And seriously, if there was one thing I knew before starting my junior year of high school, it was how much I needed direction.
(Page 14, US e-book edition)
If you're a fan of fairy tales or teen chick flick movies like She's All That, Mean Girls, and Never Been Kissed, you'll definitely enjoy CINDERELLA GEEK by K. Sean Jennkrist. It's 315 pages, but it reads fast, and it's suited for tweens as well as older readers.
Delores is sick of being a geek. She's about to be a junior in high school, but even her middle school sister is more popular than her. Eileen has had four boyfriends in the past three years--and she's only thirteen. Delores is sixteen and has had zip. After watching Ever After and The Princess Diaries, she realizes that the only way to fit in and become more interesting is to change everything about herself. She asks everyone to call her DeeDee rather than Delores and implores her Aunt Gloria to help her become more fashion-savvy. In truly godmother-like fashion, Aunt Gloria goes through some new arrivals at the store she owns to give DeeDee some cutting edge outfits and books her with a great stylist who helps transform Delores into DeeDee. DeeDee's Cinderella-like state continues when she meets a boy named Griffin while out running with her friend Trey. She falls in the mud and her shoe pops up. Of course, "Prince Charming" is there to pick it up and help her put it back on! But what happens when Sheila, the most popular girl in school who DeeDee is dying to be friends with, decides that Griffin is going to be her boyfriend? Or decides to crush DeeDee and return her to her Delores roots? What will it take to make DeeDee realize what matters most?
DeeDee isn't always a likable character. She makes a lot of bad, selfish choices and gets too involved in hiding her identity and letting more popular classmates sway her decisions. She loses her friends and her identity, and doesn't realize it until much too late. At the same time, this sort of character is at the heart of these transformation stories, and many readers will sympathize with her. I wish the secondary characters had been a little more fleshed out and that there'd been more consistent interaction between DeeDee and Griffin. Her friend Trey was my favorite character, and I expected more from his arc. He was a great friend, even when DeeDee was blowing him off. I also really enjoy the evolution of DeeDee's stepmother, who started off as your traditional fairy tale villain, but evolved and grew deeper as the novel progressed.
I read this one in less than two hours, and would definitely recommend it to younger tween readers who enjoy stories of transformation and finding yourself. It's light on the fairy tale aspect, but has fun touches that will make fans of the genre smile.
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C O N T E N T R A T I N G S
Content Ratings: highlight between ( ) for details
Romance: PG ( light kissing. )
Language: PG ( Mild language )
Violence: PG ( Mild girl fight at school )
Other: ( mean girl occurrences, verbal abuse from a stepparent )
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C O V E R D E S I G N:
This cover is much better than the original cover!
When I downloaded the book, the cover looked like this:
I like the way the current cover has an artsy flair. It's watercolor, and it's drippy and imperfect, a work in progress. The main character, Delores, is trying to change herself to become popular, and is modifying her looks and actions to fit in. She, too, is a work in progress. I think the cover is more suited to the book than one of a pair of books that the main character never wears!
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O F F I C I A L I N F O:
Title: CINDERELLA GEEK
Author: K. Sean Jennkrist
Release Date: April 1, 2011
Publisher: K. Sean Jennkrist
Received: Purchased
Received: Purchased
SUMMARY:
Sixteen and a geek. Delores Chimayo
wants to cross over to the other side. Pretty, popular, and a social
success is everything she's not. And now she has a plan, ten steps to
gain stardom and erase geekdom. But even the best made plans can take
some disastrous turns and come out in a way never expected.
Maybe that's because she has a few working against her. A stepmom, who Delores secretly calls Cruella, seems to criticize her every move; a sister, Eileen, a preppy cheerleader who at thirteen has already had four boyfriends; and Sheila Thompson, the queen of snobs. She will stop at nothing to gain popularity, and that includes stomping out the competition like Delores.
Adding to outside distractions is her home life that's far from idyllic. Delores' dad is doing rescue work thousands of miles away in Ecuador. Her mother passed away when Delores was only twelve. That leaves Grandma Jordan and Aunt Gloria in her corner. They serve up plenty of support. Somehow, with friends like Trey, Lucy, and Penelope, Delores manages to work through her plan, tweaking and adjusting details along the way.
Venturing on the other side doesn't turn out to be as sweet a victory as Delores might have guessed, but there are attractive points. Like Griffin Montgomery, the hottie who every girl, including Sheila, would love to have as a boyfriend. It's a duel between the geeks and the populars.
Eventually, Delores has to decide what is important enough to fight for and manage to find a happily-ever-after ending in CINDERELLA GEEK, a modern-day fairy tale for teens.
Maybe that's because she has a few working against her. A stepmom, who Delores secretly calls Cruella, seems to criticize her every move; a sister, Eileen, a preppy cheerleader who at thirteen has already had four boyfriends; and Sheila Thompson, the queen of snobs. She will stop at nothing to gain popularity, and that includes stomping out the competition like Delores.
Adding to outside distractions is her home life that's far from idyllic. Delores' dad is doing rescue work thousands of miles away in Ecuador. Her mother passed away when Delores was only twelve. That leaves Grandma Jordan and Aunt Gloria in her corner. They serve up plenty of support. Somehow, with friends like Trey, Lucy, and Penelope, Delores manages to work through her plan, tweaking and adjusting details along the way.
Venturing on the other side doesn't turn out to be as sweet a victory as Delores might have guessed, but there are attractive points. Like Griffin Montgomery, the hottie who every girl, including Sheila, would love to have as a boyfriend. It's a duel between the geeks and the populars.
Eventually, Delores has to decide what is important enough to fight for and manage to find a happily-ever-after ending in CINDERELLA GEEK, a modern-day fairy tale for teens.
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