Saturday, July 19, 2008

Mia the Melodramatic-Eileen Boggess

Mia the Melodramatic
Eileen Boggess
Bancroft, Mar 2008, $19.95
ISBN: 9781890862565

Fifteen years old Mia fears this is going to be the summer of her discontent. Her best friend Lisa is off to some brainy camp and her boyfriend Tim is in Maine visiting his grandparents while she remains in Des Moines. She assesses her options, Mia concludes she can spend her vacation time being the butt of her younger brother Chris’ pranks or she can escape the house by finding a job although employment for a young teen is not easy to find.

Mia obtains work at Little Tyke’s where her role is coming off the bench to replace youthful stage frightened actors; that is when she is not mortifying herself as Playtime Pal the clown. As Tim dates a New England teen, heartbroken Mia considers going out with attractive fellow troupe member Eric.

The heroine has come a long way from MIA THE MEEK as she does things she could not have done before like performing on stage and overcoming a broken heart to dive back into the dating pool. What stays the same is the amusing sibling war with Chris as she matches him prank for prank; young readers will be on the alert when it comes to their breakfast. Yet by summer’s end there is a truce of sorts between the battling sibs. Young adult fans will enjoy the lighthearted MIA THE MELODRAMATIC as the star deals with several relationship calamities although never that deeply.

Harriet Klausner

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