Have you ever liked someone so much that you began assuming they shared your affection and admiration? This type of mental outlook clouds our reality and causes us not to see what is really happening around us. The relationship with the person who was truly meant for us doesn't have a chance to blossom because we are so attached to the outcome that we can't see past what we think should happen. This is the case with Laurie Preston in Movie Girl.

The story begins when the would-be lovers are barely teenagers. Laurie falls in love with Artie the first time she sees him and begins to pursue her dream of marrying him. However, Artie is oblivious to her feelings for him. He hardly knows she exists. The nonchalant coincidentally-on-purpose meetings she sets up to "run into" him are more clumsy and accidental than she planned, and he doesn't gets the message. Instead, he has her write a poem for his girlfriend, whom Laurie assumes is none other than herself!

Being the youngest in a family of writers, Laurie has a natural talent for writing and everyone at school knows it. Therefore, when Paul Revere High School is awarded a grant to allow the school to film a movie, Laurie is the sophomore chosen to write the script. From asking him to be on the writing committee to playing the lead role, Laurie tries everything to get the unsuspecting future-father-of-her-children to notice her--she even joins the high school chess club in an effort to sit next to him.

Once the script begins to take shape, Laurie's infatuation for Artie becomes more and more obvious. With names like MacArthur Wedlock and Lauren Trueheart and the setting in the fog-shrouded moors, the committee has to help open her eyes to a better storyline.

Hamlett uses the book as a teaching tool. Not only is there a lesson in the moral of the story, and take-home value demonstrated in family relationships, but the reader also learns something about writing for screenplay and how it differs from writing a book. A book is written with great detail given to imagery, plot, character, and scene. A screenplay has a special formatting with a lot of white space and only minimalist description other than to say who enters when and where.

The truth about Artie comes out in a heart-breaking manner, but it also opens Laurie's eyes to an even greater truth. The friend she has been ignoring and continuously pushing away is almost lost before she realizes what a treasure he is.

Christina has developed her story well and told it in a manner that both adults and teenagers will appreciate. While the story is set among teenaged characters, it deals with such a mature topic that anyone, any age can benefit from the reading. It gives adults a glimpse into what teens deal with; it gives teens a reminder to utilize family dynamics and allow the adults who love them to play an active role in their daily triumphs and frustrations.

The story has a happy ending with many lessons learned. I highly recommend this book.