Saturday, April 19, 2014

Rock 'N' Roll Princesses Wear Black by Kelley Polark with Giveaway



ROCK 'N' ROLL PRINCESSES
WEAR BLACK
By Kelley Polark
Big Smile Press LLC
Middle Grade Contemporary
136 pages



Music class and recess totally rock, but being teased in school and ignored at home totally stinks. Stefani Lucas is a rockin’ sixth grader who loves music and dresses like a mini hipster in all black, but there's one thing cramping her style - her lame baby brother who manages to hog all the attention from her parents.

When classmates tease her about her clothes and even double dare her to (gasp!) wear another color, Stef decides a minor makeover may be in order.  Can Stef change for others and still stay true to herself?



MY TIDBITS


Stefani is a self-confident sixth grader, who knows what she likes: music and wearing black. Her look on life is very true to her age and a lot of fun to follow. She's spunky, spirited and even has a couple flaws. The biggest of these is the jealousy toward her baby brother. Although her feelings seemed a little extreme sometimes, I believe girls that age will totally feel for Stefani.

The beginning chapters focus mostly on Stefani's dissatisfaction with her brother, her parents and a bunch of girls at school, who just won't leave her alone. Yep, those girls are nasty, and I felt for Stefani as she faced their teasings. I really get to know Stefani well during first half of the book, so when her troubles started, I found myself excited to see how she solves her problems.

The scenes are very well done. I had no difficulty setting myself in her school or watching the moments with her parents at home. The other characters were also enjoyable and very realistic. Especially the boy from Wyoming added a nice touch, although his word usage wasn't always quite realistic. I had to smile at a few of his phrases. I especially enjoyed his special 'expertise' and would have enjoyed seeing more of him in the story.


SPOILER ALARM!!!
I'll admit, I was a little disappointed to see Stefani 'give-in' to the other girl's harrassment and change her style (even if it was only a bit.) However, this reaction was probably more realistic and a good middle ground. It was a little funny to see how the other girls reacted with their own styles.

All in all, this is a fun read for girls ages 8 to 12. They'll have no trouble feeling for Stefani and her problems, and love the way she deals with them.

In other words, I give this a big:


THUMBS UP!!! 


You can find it:

Barnes & Noble: coming soon!




And here she is. . .
Kelley Polark!!!


Kelly Polark is a married mom of three and educator/author from the great Midwest. ROCK 'N' ROLL PRINCESSES WEAR BLACK is Kelly's debut middle grade novel. She is also the author of the ABC picture book, ROCKABET: CLASSIC EDITION and two Meegenius books: BIG SISTER, BABY BROTHER and HOLD THE MUSTARD! In her free time, Kelly loves to hang with her fam, read books for all ages, and sing along at rock concerts.


You can find her:







3 comments:

Kelly Polark said...

Thank you for the thumbs up!!! :)

Stacie Theis said...

As the mother of a soon to be 5th grader I was happy to read your review. I know how hard it is for kids to express their individuality while trying to fit in with their peers. I am definitely adding this book to our summer reading list. Thanks for sharing!

Rosemond said...

This looks great! I think my daughter would love this book! She's 9!