Publisher: Walker 
Date: May 10, 2011
Series or Standalone: Standalone
Date: May 10, 2011
Series or Standalone: Standalone
ISBN: 0802721778
Format: Hardcover, 256 pagesSource: ARC
Cover thoughts: Plain, not very eye catching
Rating: B
First line: I love to argue.
First line: I love to argue.
Ellie Taylor likes to argue, so she is thrilled when she gets into the Christian Society Speech and Performance Arts summer camp. Ellie is sure that if she wins the final tournament, she will get the scholarship and get to go to her dream school! But the competition is hot--and his name is Devon. Ellie is sure she can handle him. But when she finds out that the scholarship's benefactor might be prejudice against Jews, Ellie doesn't know whether to hide her heritage or stand up for who she really is.
Ellie's Jewish background was really fun to read about. I learned about some of the foods, like matzo ball soup, and some new words, like Zeydeh which means grandfather in Yiddish. I really liked Ellie's Zeydeh, he is very opinionated and very proud of his heritage. He likes to talk, he says things that most wouldn't, like teaching Ellie at a very young age to cuss in Yiddish.
I also really enjoyed the romance between Ellie and Devon, it was cute and the competitiveness between them brought fun and an interesting edge to the story.
The scholarships benefactor's prejudice against Jews was pretty evident from the beginning by what she said and how Devon acted about it. It was sad to see someone act that way, to hate an entire group of people for what a couple of people did. The benefactor was Devon's grandma, which added another layer of tension to the story. It could have ended Devon and Ellie's relationship right away.
I didn't know what Devon would do about his grandma. Defend Ellie? Or decide it wasn't a big deal? I think he made the right choice in the end. I didn't know what Ellie would do either. Risk her scholarship and stand up for herself? Or not say anything? Ellie made the right decision in the end, it is what I would have done, just probably sooner. The book ended on a happy note.
Overall, this was a cute read that had a good message to get across: to stand up for what you believe in.
Ellie's Jewish background was really fun to read about. I learned about some of the foods, like matzo ball soup, and some new words, like Zeydeh which means grandfather in Yiddish. I really liked Ellie's Zeydeh, he is very opinionated and very proud of his heritage. He likes to talk, he says things that most wouldn't, like teaching Ellie at a very young age to cuss in Yiddish.
I also really enjoyed the romance between Ellie and Devon, it was cute and the competitiveness between them brought fun and an interesting edge to the story.
The scholarships benefactor's prejudice against Jews was pretty evident from the beginning by what she said and how Devon acted about it. It was sad to see someone act that way, to hate an entire group of people for what a couple of people did. The benefactor was Devon's grandma, which added another layer of tension to the story. It could have ended Devon and Ellie's relationship right away.
I didn't know what Devon would do about his grandma. Defend Ellie? Or decide it wasn't a big deal? I think he made the right choice in the end. I didn't know what Ellie would do either. Risk her scholarship and stand up for herself? Or not say anything? Ellie made the right decision in the end, it is what I would have done, just probably sooner. The book ended on a happy note.
Overall, this was a cute read that had a good message to get across: to stand up for what you believe in.
Get more info:
Goodreads ||| Amazon ||| IndieBound ||| Book Depository |||| Barnes & Noble
The author on the web:
Blog ||| Website ||| Twitter
Goodreads ||| Amazon ||| IndieBound ||| Book Depository |||| Barnes & Noble
The author on the web:
Blog ||| Website ||| Twitter
Interesting review--seems like a light summer read!
ReplyDelete