What I Learned From Being a Cheerleader

WHAT I LEARNED FROM BEING A CHEERLEADER

By:  Adrianne Ambrose

FIRST SENTENCE

“This diary – Mom said it’s the perfect time for me to start keeping a diary because Amy is too young to read it.”

SUMMARY
from goodreads

Eleven-year-old Elaine Rewitzer is funny, smart, and happy being a geek, but when she wins a spot on the Cross Creek Middle School Buccaneers cheerleading squad, she gets a new life.  Her mega-brain best friend Bethany warns that Elaine will just become “part of the herd,” and her best geek-guy-pal- Tim (who is struggling with nose polyps) feels forgotten.  Will Elaine survive the roller coaster of pre-teen cheerleader fame?  Will she win the heart of the cutest boy on the basketball team?  Will she confess her “uncool” love for comic books?  Will she lose Bethany and Tim’s friendship for-evah? AND WHEN WILL SHE GET HER POM POMS???

REVIEW

I can relate to Elaine because I am also an eleven-year-old “geeky” girl who is going into middle school.  Elaine’s diary is written just like a typical tween girl would write.  I appreciate that Ambrose got Elaine’s emotional and maturity levels just right.  The tween voice wasn’t overdone – it was perfect.

If you were ever a Brownie or a Girl Scout, you may recognize this little song….

“Make new friends, but keep the old
One is silver and the other gold.”

That song pretty much sums up the advice I gained from reading this book.  Elaine realized that she could branch out with new interests and new friends, but she could still keep her old friends too.  She went through some struggles to learn this lesson, but it was all presented in a realistic way.

There were some surprises including a sub-plot involving Elaine’s noisy neighbors and little comics written by Elaine and her comic book friends.  Oh, and Elaine’s conversation with her Magic 8 Ball is hilarious.

I had fun reading this book and making mental notes on what I might expect in middle school.

Thank you to Bell Bridge Books for sending this book for me to review.

RATING

4        Plot

5        Characters

5        Attention Grabbing

5        Girlie Meter

4        Ending

23      TOTAL

5        STARS