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A review by haia_929
The Fashion Disaster that Changed my Life by Lauren Myracle
4.0
This is a trimmed down version of my review, to view the full review visit The Book Ramble.
Alli's longing to be popular is one I think most middle school students can understand. Maybe they aren't so interested in being popular, but they want to be noticed. This desire to be noticed and liked is a pretty common one in all people, but is very important for middle schoolers who are starting to figure out who they are. I found that Lauren Myracle's take on this was really accurate because she really dealt with the fact that sometimes we want everyone to like us, even when we know they aren't worth the effort.
I personally find the quest for popularity storyline a little overdone, but it is a fairly classic middle school/high school plot and one that is very relevant to most preteen and teen lives. I think there's something a little different in this story because the people Alli initially leaves behind aren't so great either. Kathy, her only friend at the beginning of the book, is really not a great friend. She's the kind of person who puts you down enough to make herself feel good but not enough to push you away.
Myracle created realistic characters who had a great deal of depth to them. Even in such a short book Myracle added in enough detail to most of the minor characters that you got a sense of the struggles they were facing too, so that no one was just bad or good.
Myracle is known to deal with some of the more taboo subjects in her books. This book didn't shy away from topics like divorce and sex, which I think is a really good thing. They aren't dealt with in a direct manner but they are used casually to the side or in the background to normalize them, which was especially true of the topic of porn in this book.
This book is in a journal format. The directness of a journal creates a quick connection because everything is straight from Alli and comes from her perspective. It's a useful tool in middle school books which was used really well in this book.
I really enjoyed this book, even if it was a little below my reading level. I think this is a really good read for middle school students that has a really important message about being yourself and standing up for yourself, especially in a verbal, non-physical sense. I highly recommend this book!
Alli's longing to be popular is one I think most middle school students can understand. Maybe they aren't so interested in being popular, but they want to be noticed. This desire to be noticed and liked is a pretty common one in all people, but is very important for middle schoolers who are starting to figure out who they are. I found that Lauren Myracle's take on this was really accurate because she really dealt with the fact that sometimes we want everyone to like us, even when we know they aren't worth the effort.
I personally find the quest for popularity storyline a little overdone, but it is a fairly classic middle school/high school plot and one that is very relevant to most preteen and teen lives. I think there's something a little different in this story because the people Alli initially leaves behind aren't so great either. Kathy, her only friend at the beginning of the book, is really not a great friend. She's the kind of person who puts you down enough to make herself feel good but not enough to push you away.
Myracle created realistic characters who had a great deal of depth to them. Even in such a short book Myracle added in enough detail to most of the minor characters that you got a sense of the struggles they were facing too, so that no one was just bad or good.
Myracle is known to deal with some of the more taboo subjects in her books. This book didn't shy away from topics like divorce and sex, which I think is a really good thing. They aren't dealt with in a direct manner but they are used casually to the side or in the background to normalize them, which was especially true of the topic of porn in this book.
This book is in a journal format. The directness of a journal creates a quick connection because everything is straight from Alli and comes from her perspective. It's a useful tool in middle school books which was used really well in this book.
I really enjoyed this book, even if it was a little below my reading level. I think this is a really good read for middle school students that has a really important message about being yourself and standing up for yourself, especially in a verbal, non-physical sense. I highly recommend this book!