REVENGE OF THE GIRL WITH THE GREAT PERSONALITY by Elizabeth Eulberg

Due to being incredibly busy lately,
I’m going to be doing reviews a little differently for awhile. I’m
bullet pointing my thoughts for you instead of constructing lengthy
paragraphs. We’ll see how this goes. I needed to make sure to tell you about this fantastic book coming out next week though!

Title: REVENGE OF THE GIRL WITH THE GREAT PERSONALITY
Author: Elizabeth Eulberg
Publisher: Scholastic Point
Release Date: March 1, 2013
Number of Pages: 261
Source of Book: ARC requested from publisher at NCTE

A hilarious new novel from Elizabeth Eulberg about taking the wall out of the wallflower so she can bloom.

Don’t mess with a girl with a Great Personality.

Everybody
loves Lexi. She’s popular, smart, funny…but she’s never been one of
those girls, the pretty ones who get all the attention from guys. And on
top of that, her seven-year-old sister, Mackenzie, is a terror in a
tiara, and part of a pageant scene where she gets praised for her beauty
(with the help of fake hair and tons of makeup).

Lexi’s sick of
it. She’s sick of being the girl who hears about kisses instead of
getting them. She’s sick of being ignored by her longtime crush, Logan.
She’s sick of being taken for granted by her pageant-obsessed mom. And
she’s sick of having all her family’s money wasted on a phony pursuit of
perfection.

The time has come for Lexi to step out from the
sidelines. Girls without great personalities aren’t going to know what
hit them. Because Lexi’s going to play the beauty game – and she’s in it
to win it.

First thought: I so adore Elizabeth Eulberg’s books and this newest one hits the right notes once again.
– Elizabeth Eulberg is one of my absolute favorite contemporary writers!
– Her books are sweet and meaningful and have real characters who are finding their true selves and how to be who they really are.
– Lexi learns to stand up for herself even in a dysfunctional family.
– Seeing the inner workings of the pageant life was entertaining throughout.
– Lexi becomes her own person, not what others say she should be…juxtaposed with the world of child pageants where it’s all about what others say about a girl.
– Has true-to-life, relatable, honest characters.
– Great best friends. One is gay, which has it’s own side story that is a nice counterpoint and instigator to what Lexi is dealing with, and both are there for her always.
– Idea: Not necessarily meant to be with the one you might think, but have to go through it to really find out about yourself.
– The drama of high school popularity politics is alive and well, and will hook my student readers.
– Some guys are truly good…even if it takes the girl a little while to see what’s there in front of her.
– Loved the fact that Taylor Riggins appears as one of those good guys (and if you don’t catch that reference, you haven’t watched enough of that amazing TV show).
– Left with hope at the end, but also at a point where Lexi realizes that she needs to work through becoming her best self before being with a guy.
– Good message for real girls.
Final thought: Is it all about looks? Who says you have to be with someone to be you?