"To find out what a story's really about,' the Librarian said,

'you don't ask the writer. You ask the reader."


- SNOW & ROSE by Emily Winfield Martin


Thursday, January 2, 2014

YA Review: THE REAL PROM QUEENS OF WESTFIELD HIGH by Laurie Boyle Crompton


by Laurie Boyle Crompton
Expected release date: February 4th, 2014
Published by: Sourcebooks Fire
Genre: Young Adult Contemporary
Format read: eARC from Netgalley/publisher for an honest review.


SUMMARY

Shannon has never lived down her very public, most embarrassing moment, so it is no shock when she is voted least likely to be prom queen at Westfield High. That is, until she’s selected to co-star in a hidden-camera reality show, The Prom Queen Wannabees, and undergoes a complete makeover, sponsored by NĊ‘realique Cosmetics. Shannon must battle to be elected Prom Queen and snag the One! Million! Dollar! prize.

After a dramatic make-over, Shannon and two other Wannabes enter senior year: now the social hierarchy of the entire class is about to be turned upside down. Shannon’s helpful new Life Coach declares her BFF a “popularity liability” and orders her to cease flirting with the class science geek in favor of the beefcake quarterback (his muscles would make the perfect prom accessory!).

Meanwhile, the former front-runners for Prom Queen start having serious bad luck. But when Shannon uncovers proof that the beauty business can be awfully ugly, she must find a way to show her BFF and one true crush that underneath that fabulous makeover, she really hasn’t changed. The battle is on, the French-manicured claws are out, and the live! finale on Prom Night promises to shock everyone’s corsages off.


MY REVIEW

If you love drama, drama and more drama, comedy and a side of reality thrown at you, then this is definitely your kind of read! Ms. Crompton has a gift for creating realistic and likeable characters...

Our main character Shannon is not having the best of high school experiences - especially with a nickname like 'Elf Ucker'. She does her best to keep herself under the radar and out of the spotlight from the 'mean girls'... until her worst fears become a reality: she is voted most UNLIKELY to become prom queen. She knew things were bad, but not that bad. So when a very popular cosmetics company approaches her, and the other 2 girls most unlikely to become prom queens, to star on a reality show much like America's Next Top Model - how can she say no! How can anybody say no to a makeover, expensive clothes, new car, life coaches and the chance to win a million dollars?? It will give her the opportunity to finally become and have what she's always thought she wanted.
Will her dreams come true?
Will she win the boy of her dreams?
Will she become the prom queen?
Or, will reality become, for lack of a better word, reality!

Shannon and what the other girls go through are exactly what we've seen on reality tv with over-the-top dramatization, back-stabbing and lots of boo-hooing; but, we also get to see the other side to what these girls actually go through - the emotional breakdowns and breakthroughs, the manipulation of what the producers want you to see versus what actually happened, how these girls grow and mature for the worse and then the better and so much more. Such a page turner!

A very fun, quirky, quick read for the younger YA audience!
Definitely a book to dive into - thought provoking with good laugh out loud moments!




ABOUT THE AUTHOR - Laurie Boyle Crompton


Laurie Boyle Crompton grew up in Butler, Pennsylvania, where she was never in danger of becoming prom queen despite looking fairly cute in a tiara. She now splits her time between Queens and New Paltz, NY, and is the author of the YA novel Blaze. As research for The Real Prom Queens she may or may not have watched every episode of America’s Next Top Model.



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