Starring Jules: As Herself (#1)
By: Beth Levine Ain
Review by: Kaede
Release Date: March 1st, 2013
Publisher: Scholastic
Pages: 160
Format: e-ARC
Source: NetGalley (Thank You, Scholastic!)
Other Titles in the Series: Starring Jules: In Drama-Rama (#2)
Lights! Camera! Action! A hilarious chapter book debut from a fabulous new talent!
Things to Know About Me
by Jules Bloom
1. I am a scrambled-eggs-and-chocolate-milk type person.
2. I have an audition for a TV commercial (which would be great if I were a tall-icy-drink type person.)
3. I am in between best friends right now.
4. I am worried that the audition will be a disaster. (See #1 and #3!)
Jules doesn't want to ruin THE OPPORTUNITY OF A LIFETIME, and she's willing to turn to anyone for help--even her know-it-all ex-best friend! If only that lovely new girl in class would turn out to be the new best friend of her dreams, maybe, just maybe, Jules will be ready for her close-up...
Seven-going-on-eight year old Jules Bloom has been offered a opportunity of a lifetime. She's been invited by Ms. Kingston, a beautiful lady that randomly came up to her when she was eating in a restaurant with her family, to attend an T.V. commercial audition.
Jules will be competing for the role in a orange mouthwash commercial.
There's just one problem.
Jules Bloom doesn't do oranges.
No, like seriously. Since the throw-up incident from a orange sherbet a long, long time ago, Jules has refused anything orange-related. Orange Tic Tac, orange t-shirts - and orange mouthwash is no exception. But there has to be a way to overcome the horror of oranges, right? (Can you even read that sentence with a straight face? I never thought that oranges could be a legitimate fear o_o...I eat them everyday.)
Jules will be competing for the role in a orange mouthwash commercial.
There's just one problem.
Jules Bloom doesn't do oranges.
No, like seriously. Since the throw-up incident from a orange sherbet a long, long time ago, Jules has refused anything orange-related. Orange Tic Tac, orange t-shirts - and orange mouthwash is no exception. But there has to be a way to overcome the horror of oranges, right? (Can you even read that sentence with a straight face? I never thought that oranges could be a legitimate fear o_o...I eat them everyday.)
Just as much as Jules hates oranges though, she loves lists. It's a way she can organize all her feelings on a page, keep track of all the things that fly in and out of her brain, Twitterand she utilizes lists for almost everything. How to overcome her orange problem, reasons why Elinor of London is totally new best friend material, and things to do before she turns eight. So I thought it was only right for me to honor that with a list of my own. So here goes nothing.
Things I Liked:
- The quickness. Being only 160 pages, Starring Jules: As Herself is a fun, easy read for young children.
- The lists. They're a creative, efficient way to bring out more of Jules's feelings, making her a bit more real to the readers. They can also be entertaining.
- The artwork. When you see a book, be it middle grade, young adult, or even adult (are there even adult books with pictures?), with pictures inside, does it draw you? I personally fall prey to books with artwork more often than not, just because they bring an extra something for the story. What of the artwork I saw in the advance readers copy was simple, but a nice addition nonetheless.
- The ABCs. I promise you it's not what you think. The ABCs have nothing to with the alphabet, but rather people. I just thought it was amusing, and so like some people I know.
Things That Could Improve...
- Jules, or the main character. For some reason, Jules didn't exactly scream seven year old to me. She was fun to read about, but then she'd say something and I'd think, "Is this really a seven year old speaking?" I can't quite describe it, but maybe she seemed far too mature for her age? That's not necessarily a bad thing, since I'm often told I'm too mature for my age, but it just seemed...weird?
- The supporting cast. With most of the remainder of the characters that were introduced I had the same problem I had with Jules. I'd be reading, everything going smoothly, and then someone would say something with weird wording and I'd be like, "Wait, what?" And so after a repetition of the same thing happening, over and over again, I've come to the conclusion that:
Things I Liked:
- The quickness. Being only 160 pages, Starring Jules: As Herself is a fun, easy read for young children.
- The lists. They're a creative, efficient way to bring out more of Jules's feelings, making her a bit more real to the readers. They can also be entertaining.
- The artwork. When you see a book, be it middle grade, young adult, or even adult (are there even adult books with pictures?), with pictures inside, does it draw you? I personally fall prey to books with artwork more often than not, just because they bring an extra something for the story. What of the artwork I saw in the advance readers copy was simple, but a nice addition nonetheless.
- The ABCs. I promise you it's not what you think. The ABCs have nothing to with the alphabet, but rather people. I just thought it was amusing, and so like some people I know.
Things That Could Improve...
- Jules, or the main character. For some reason, Jules didn't exactly scream seven year old to me. She was fun to read about, but then she'd say something and I'd think, "Is this really a seven year old speaking?" I can't quite describe it, but maybe she seemed far too mature for her age? That's not necessarily a bad thing, since I'm often told I'm too mature for my age, but it just seemed...weird?
- The supporting cast. With most of the remainder of the characters that were introduced I had the same problem I had with Jules. I'd be reading, everything going smoothly, and then someone would say something with weird wording and I'd be like, "Wait, what?" And so after a repetition of the same thing happening, over and over again, I've come to the conclusion that:
 |
| Sorry, but I can't help you there. |
So basically, my one problem with Starring Jules: As Herself is that the characters seemed out of age when speaking. But overall, Beth Levine Ain has created an entertaining middle-grade series starring yours truly; Jules.
If you have a child you're trying to find an appropriate chapter book for, or if you're simply looking for a quick and easy read, you can't go wrong with Starring Jules. I'd recommend it for children who've enjoyed series such as Junie B. Jones, because it gives off the same happy feeling I remember getting when I was younger and read some of the Junie B. Jones books. Junie and Jules are both very fun characters, with vibrant unique personalities that can make them real to young readers.
3 coffee cups!
**An advance copy of this book was provided by the publisher for review. However, all opinions remain honest and my own.**
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~♥~
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