Published
February 7th, 2008 |
Prom.
Prom fever has infected LA - especially Cindy's two annoying stepsisters, and her overly-Botoxed stepmother. Cindy seems to be the only one immune to it all. But her anti-prom letter in the school newspaper does more to turn Cindy into Queen of the Freaks than close the gap between the popular kids and the rest of the students. Everyone thinks she's committed social suicide, except for her two best friends, yoga goddess India and John Hughes-worshipping Malcolm, and shockingly, the most popular senior at Castle Heights High and Cindy's crush, Adam Silver. Suddenly Cindy starts to think that maybe her social life could have a happily ever after. But there's still the rest of the school to deal with. With a little bit of help from an unexpected source and a fabulous pair of flip-flops, Cindy realizes that she still has a chance at a happily ever after. |
Reviews: School Library Journal: Gr 5–9 - Likable sophomore Cindy is completely out of place in her materialistic Los Angeles private school, and her scathing anti-prom letter to the school newspaper only serves to diminish her status to pariah. Cindy can't believe that every single article focuses on the upcoming prom. Where are the articles on global warming, AIDS, or curing cancer? The student body is appalled by her missive, as are her twin stepsisters Ashley and Britney and her overly botoxed, clueless stepmother. The only people who understand are Cindy's BFFs, India and Malcolm; her IM pal, "BklynBoy"; and, surprisingly, her secret crush, Adam. But to the teen's dismay, even India and Malcolm elect to attend the senior prom, leaving her planning to stay home - until she discovers that BklynBoy has other ideas. This formulaic, fairy-tale-based romance will be a favorite with girls, mostly because Cindy is such a wonderful character - thoughtful, intelligent, pretty, and kind. The happy ending is predictable, but that doesn't diminish the enjoyment. A particularly refreshing feature is that while current adolescent issues (sex, drugs, anorexia) are mentioned, giving the novel greater depth, they're not the focus. - Susan Riley, Mount Kisco Public Library, NY Meet Cindy Ella Gold. Unlike her similar-name counterpart Cinderella, she does not want to go to the Elegant Ball, nowadays known as the Prom. In fact, she's written a letter to the editor that passionately goes against what the Prom has come to stand for, rather than its original intent. Unfortunately, the letter goes not the way it was planned to go; instead of becoming a hero, she's become a social pariah in the school. But even through all of this, with the help of her two friends India and Malcolm, and surprisingly, the most popular senior in the school and Cindy's secret crush Adam Silver, Cindy comes to realize that there may still be a chance at a happily-ever-after. Palmer's debut is absolutely hilarious and such a wonderful concept. Cindy is a great character and so much fun to read about. The secondary characters are very well-developed, and absolutely just as much fun to see in the book. [ . . . ] Cindy Ella is available in bookstores everywhere right now with a pretty sparkly cover! All of her life, Cindy Ella Gold has been aware that her name reminds people of the fairy tale. However, she's not an storybook princess; she's a high school student. When sophomore Cindy writes an 'anti-prom' letter to the editor that gets published in her school paper, most of her prom-obsessed classmates (and even some of her teachers!) are shocked and appalled. Luckily, Cindy's friends and family support her to different degrees, even those who are planning on going to the prom themselves. Before this contemporary comedy is through, Cindy finds another way and another reason to celebrate. Cindy Ella, Robin Palmer's debut novel, is a modern-day realistic Cinderella story without the fantasy elements. Instead of battling her evil stepmother, Cindy battles her frizzy hair. She doesn't have a horrible home life. In fact, even though she doesn't share their priorities, she gets along fairly well with her father, her half-brother, her stepmother, and her stepsisters. The latter are fraternal twins, popular at their school, anxious to get custom-made dresses for prom. Cindy's friends, peace-and-yoga-loving India and suave eighties film buff Malcolm, offer plenty of tongue-in-cheek commentary about the City of Angels and their affluent classmates. While the main characters acknowledge their wealth and the advantages it provides, Cindy herself prefers flip-flops to pricey shoes and doesn't care at all for shopping. All in all, a fun read. The easily-flustered title character has plenty of embarrassing moments which will endear her to readers. Instead of scrubbing floors or waiting for her fairy godmother to appear, Cindy baby-sits her younger brother, hangs out with her friends, crushes on senior Adam Silver, and chats with her online pal BklynBoy. She's an L.A. girl, yes, but she's very much an awkward teen, stumbling over her own feet rather than coveting glass slippers. Never aspiring for beauty or a crown makes Cindy a real winner. Recommended for fans of The Princess Diaries by Meg Cabot or the Lizzie McGuire television series. - Little Willow
Interviews: Bildungsroman (Little Willow)
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