YA Challenge #3- Dork Diaries

Being a tween is not an easy thing. To begin with, your parents are a constant embarrassment. They still use your humiliating childhood family name and don't hesitate to use it in public. On top of that you have to make sure that you are wearing the most "in" clothes and you have to make sure that you are in the "in" crowd. And if you're not? Then you better work your butt off to be acknowledged by them.

Nikki Maxwell has just transfered to a private middle school called Westchester Country Day. Automatically she has no friends, and in-order to become popular she needs an new iPhone. DUH! She begs and pleads for her mother to buy her one. When her mom arrives home from the mall that day, Nikki thinks she's gonna get it! Unfortunately what she gets is...a diary. This is no good. How is she supposed to get in with the CCP (cute, cool, & popular) crowd with a dumb diary?

Things for Nikki aren't going so well. She doesn't have a cell phone, her clothes are not from the mall, she has no friends, and to make matters worse, Mackenzie (the Queen of the CCP) will not stop picking on her. One day at gym class Nikki makes friends with Zoey and Chloe. They become good friends - and suddenly school life isn't so bad. Nikki's school is having an art competition. Nikki has been going to art class for 4 summers and has almost perfected her skill. When she goes to the office to sign up she sees Mackenzie signing up. Nikki joins too, and hopes to beat Mackenzie. On the day of the art competition Nikki's photo breaks, and it looks like once again Mackenzie has won.

When I was reading this book, it made me think back to the days when I was in middle school - and how I desperately wanted to be part of the "preps" at my school. I would beg my dad to let me buy new clothes. However, being a single parent, he couldn't do it. I remember watching the show "Clarissa Explains It All" and admiring her, she could make any outfit look cool. It seemed that I could not. I completely sympathized with Nikki.

This book is VERY VERY funny. In the beginning of the book, Nikki has to do a paper on "A Midsummer Night's Dream". I almost spilled milk out my nose when I read "I was kind of surprised, because I didn't know he [Shakespeare] wrote teen chick lit" (13). This book has some other very funny parts. I also love the pictures - it's very "tween"! I can't wait to see if sequel come out. I will so totally read it!

I got the inspiration to read this book at Holly's blog which is Writer's Block Reviews. Also Nona from J Kaye's Book Blog posted about the book which can be found here. However, on J Kaye's Book Blog - the book was also in a contest (which is now closed.) I hope you guys enjoy the book as much as I did :)

Dork Diaries : Tales from a Not-So-Fabulous Life by Rachel Renee Russell. New York (c) 2009