Title: Gossip Girl
Author: Cecily von Ziegesar
Length: 201 pages
Genre: YA
Plot Basics: Former "it" girl Serena van der Woodsen returns to her former NYC prep school after a year away at boarding school and comes back with a cloud of nasty rumors about what happened to her during the last year. Her former friends don't really want to interact with her, and so Serena makes some new friends.
Banter Points: It was an easy read.
Bummer Points: Sheesh. Where to begin. Ok, point #1: Word Nerd is not 16. Maybe if she were, this book would have been better. Point #2: There are lots of books written for teens and younger that Word Nerd has really enjoyted. Point #3. Gossip Girl is not one of them. It's amazing to Word Nerd that these books are best-sellers. Not very much actually happened in this first book ... unless you count the under-aged main characters getting wasted a few times. Hopefully not sounding like a prude here, but Word Nerd was pretty appalled at the behavior of the main characters. Yes, teens get drunk and have sex, but honestly, if that the kind of story to put in their hands to have them aspire to?
Word Nerd recommendation: Skip it. If you're a parent that's got a teen girl reader, reconsider these titles. There are other, far better written, far better plotted, far better examples in fiction.
3 comments:
Hey Word Nerd,
This does have a lot to do with your post, but congrats on making your August writing goal!
And now to actually comment on your post: I always thought the Gossip Girl books were like those Bratz dolls...something I could never imagine a parent giving their child, and yet, they sell like none other. It just boggles my mind that there is a Bratz movie coming out...
I read this book and it was really good.
Post a Comment