WHAT WOULD YOU DO if you had the chance to erase your past and reinvent yourself as the person you’ve always wanted to be? Would you grab it? Would you stick with it, no matter what the consequences?You can also find my review for it here.
Cara Leonard always wished she could be one of those girls: confident, self-possessed, and never at a loss for the perfect thing to say. One of the Populazzi.
It always seemed impossible… but now could be her chance.
When Cara moves to a new school just before junior year, her best friend urges her to seize the opportunity and change her life… with the help of The Ladder. Its rungs are relationships, and if Cara transforms herself into the perfect girlfriend for guys higher and higher on the Popularity Tower, she can reach the ultimate goal: Supreme Populazzi, the most popular girl in school.
The Ladder seems like a lighthearted social experiment — a straight climb up — but it quickly becomes gnarled and twisted. And when everything goes wrong, only the most audacious act Cara can think of has a chance of setting things even a little bit right.
I also had the chance to interview Elise back when the book was released. Here's a snippet from the interview:
In your opinion, what are the top three reasons why teens (or even adults) should consider picking up Populazzi the next time they see it in stores or online?
- They’ll laugh! Poor Cara gets herself into all kinds of mortifying situations along the way in Populazzi, and while they’re pretty hideous for her, they’re really entertaining for the rest of us.
- The story and the characters are very real, even when they’re quirky and out there. Cara’s quest to figure out where she belongs is something we’ve all experienced. I’ve spoken to so many people who are loooooong out of high school, but still remember that feeling of desperately looking for that place where they could feel accepted and embraced.
- You can play Where’s Waldo to find my dog in the book. Here’s a picture of him (look right). Note the little white paws and white bib. He is the only character in the book lifted from real life. He doesn’t mind – he feels he was portrayed accurately.
To buy Populazzi and/or add it to your wishlist, head on over to Amazon, Goodreads, Barnes and Noble, and/or IndieBound.
Your review was terrific! I agree you with, Cara is such an amazing main character. I connected with her on so many levels. Also, Elise was so amazing in portraying the going ons of a typical high school. I always laugh out loud during books,I didn't stop laughing when I read this! Rewind back to mid-July of last year when I read this and live-tweeted all through out reading it, the twitter feed is 99% including an LOL.
ReplyDeleteAwesome interview with E, by the way. Learned something new, had never read about her attributing Born This Way to the book, but she's quite right. It works.
Great Review! and Awesome interview with Elise!
ReplyDeleteThanks for the great review and love the interview as well! This is the first I'm hearing of this author and I'm so glad I found out about her! I definitely must go read her books now!! Thanks : )
ReplyDeleteThanks for the great info on the book. I am really looking forward to reading this one!
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