Category: Young Adult/Teen Publisher: Blind Monkey Times
ISBN-10: 1448677009
Pages: 210
Copyright: May 31, 2010
ISBN-13: 9781448677009
Price: $2.99 (eBook)
The story of one girl's plan to take over the world, one fan at a time.
When Celine finds her father's guitar in the basement, she has a vague notion of learning to play, but no conviction. Her mother's doubts, though, prod her to action and once she gets a taste of the power of a girl and her guitar, just playing it won't do. Start a band and take over the world? Well, anything's possible. A young-adult novel that be enjoyed by all ages. Come for the humor, stay for the comedy.
Professional Reviews
A Bit Too Young for Me, but Not Bad
I have to admit that I was surprised to find that the author is not, indeed, a teenage girl. Okay, I'm joking a little bit, but to me, the "voice" did a good job of conveying the thoughts and attitudes of young girls, to the point where I found myself, as an adult, getting somewhat annoyed with them.
I think this would be better for a young adult audience; perhaps that was the intent, but the description was fairly short.
I found the mother to be somewhat over the top. I wouldn't really expect Cecile to be a reliable narrator when it comes to her mother (what teenage girl is?), but the actions we're allowed to see objectively were not, in my opinion, believable. The idea of a mother discussing childhood issues in economic terms is somewhat amusing, but when taken to the point of asking a 5-year-old to justify a trip to McDonald's in such terms, it becomes almost a caricature. Repeatedly encouraging her daughter to think about the future is believable and consistent; the extreme steps taken by the mother in that effort were not, at least to me.
The premise itself is fun and although my adult perspective meant that it was a bit difficult to suspend disbelief in spots, I was able to run with the story, for the most part. The utter determination shown in the face of challenge after challenge was both amusing and...well, I can't say it was "inspiring" for me as an adult, but I thought it did a good job of showing that maybe one can't accomplish exactly what one sets out to do, but one can certainly do *something* worthwhile. Even the mother finally redeemed herself a bit at the end.
Jennifer finally ends up in Apalachia after barely escaping an attack. She soon learns about her destiny and how her actions will 'put a friend in grave danger'. With everyone refusing to tell her more Jennifer must find answers for herself.
Shine is designed to help you build a firm belief in yourself and your abilities and empower you to navigate life’s ups and downs with grace and resilience