I literally squealed with delight as I finished reading this. 


The title is so similar to How to Be Popular, I wondered if this was written as a response to that book.  And yet, it bears many more similarities to Stargirl.  On a different note, it's wonderful to see an original cover instead of some stock photo.

( Lunch at a new school is like the SAT of social tests. It determines your immediate standing. Whomever you choose to sit with tells people who you are, or who you see yourself as. )

All right, maybe that's a slight exaggeration, since I never really lost my faith in the first place.  But I have been noticing that some of the books I've read lately, with the exception of Sweet 16, haven't really wowed me.  This book, however, is a major game-changer.


First of all, feast your eyes on this doozy of a cover.  Don't you just wish you could jump into it, a la Mary Poppins, and live in that colorful, cartoony version of New York?  Because among other things, this book is a gentle celebration of all things New York.

( Every other person in Silicon Valley is of Indian descent or related to an Internet tycoon, and frequently they're both. I'm actually considered pretty mainstream. )

Okay, another confession: this was one of the first books I saw that interested me in this reading campaign I now have going on.


I ordered the paperback off Amazon for literally $4.00, so I knew I wouldn't beat myself up too bad if it turned out to be a dud. 

( Power and/or wealth seemed to be the order of the day. And again, I was the odd one out. )

This was a disappointingly short read.  For something based on one of the greatest books ever written, it's extraordinarily slight.


But don't worry, that's not all I have to say about this book.  It was actually very thought-provoking, not that I want to give the actual text too much credit.

I finally finished this book after weeks of reading it in 15-minute intervals.


This is one book where it might be more worthwhile to purchasse it, rather than use your mother's library card to check it out.  But either way, you need to check it out.

( If you can make it to puberty without already having become a Catcher in the Rye casualty you're a better man than I, and I'd love to know your secret. It's too late for me, but the Future Children of America will thank you. )

Again with the Meg Cabot.  But next time, I'll definitely stick to checking out her books from the library.


Clearly, this is a subject Meg knows a lot about, since she's still whipping out books that readers love ... to snark.

( I really have to get a new library card. )

Since I have no YA lit to review (currently reading: The Breakup Bible, Bergdorf Blondes, and Prep), I thought I'd dip into my supply of classics.  These include, naturally, all 6 of Jane Austen's novels, but there are one or two others that aren't as well known.  This one, however, deserves as much praise.


Think of it as the Pride and Prejudice of its time.  It was published in 1778, a somewhat different time than the 1810s, in which most of Austen's books were published.  But it deals with many of the same themes.

( Oh sir, shall I ever again involve myself in so foolish an embarrassment? I am sure that if I do, I shall deserve yet greater mortification. )

I've been waiting to read this book for literally months.  I put off reading it mostly because it looked longed and the plot summary on the back sounded a lot like a story I'm still currently writing.  Well, I read this book on Saturday afternoon ... and finished Sunday morning.


Based loosely on the frog prince fairytale.  As you can see in the small type below, Robin Palmer has also writtien something called Cindy Ella.  I'll definitely keep a lookout for it the next time I go to Borders.

( Okay, so, there's three levels of popularity ... )

This is one of TV's best shows, first of all.  Even if you only know Judd Apatow from his movies, which seem to be taking over the entire comedy genre in Hollywood, you have to know that this is where it all started - and worth your while to check out.  It's in a class all of its own (no pun intended).


Like many people, I didn't watch this show when it aired.  I was in middle school then, and I guess not a part of the show's target audience.  In a way, it was probably for the best, since I probably wouldn't have appreciated it as much.  It's amazingly well-written with a large cast of aforementioned freak and geek characters, not to mention other staples of high school like jerky jocks, bitter math teachers, eager guidance counselors, and of course well-meaning parents.


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So way back before Christmas 08, I was checking around for the latest popular YA books, I discovered this gem.  I took one look at it and immediately put it on my Christmas list. 


This was also part of my ongoing campaign to read more YA books with male main characters (see Flight, Stargirl).  Larry Doyle used to write for The Simpsons, as I mentioned, which was all the more encouraging.  I read this book in less than a week.

This is the most adorable book.  I want to cuddle with it.


A couple entries ago, I mentioned how much I like character-heavy stories.  Unlike The Juliet Club, this book did something with all of its characters, and a lot of it came as a big surprise.

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