Thursday, July 15, 2010

Airhead by Meg Cabot


Emerson Watts, 16 and female, loves playing video games, hanging out with her best friend, Christopher, and has made peace with her less-than-supermodel-esque looks. But when she's involved in a mysterious accident, she wakes up to find she's now in the body of...a supermodel. Who was behind this switch? What was the motive? And how can she get Christopher to realize she's still the same person inside? Taken from Goodreads.


So, confession: I've never been interested in reading anything Meg Cabot. And that is based solely on the opinions of others, overly-fluffed plot descriptions on the back cover, and also the movie Princess Diaries, which I normally would've liked but I just CANNOT handle Anne Hathaway. Maybe not the best reasons to dismiss an author, but whatever.

And that is pretty much how I feel about this book: What. Ever.

The premise is too out there for such a cotton candy read. Freaky Friday I can handle, but this? Just not working for me. And what is with my constant referencing of Disney films featuring starletts who crashed and burned? (Okay, not Anne. She was actually very classy through her whole My Ex Is Now In Jail Because He Is A White Collar Criminal ordeal, and sported some truly lovely dresses and hairstyles while probably feeling like a hot mess inside. I was, in fact, referencing Lindsay Lohan . . . and, well. I need no further explanation I think).

So the storyline never felt real or solidified. The main character, Em, is another "heroine" who hates fashion (don't they always? or they're totally sloppy and don't know what to do about it. PLEASE.) and has a boy BFF (enough already! get a girl friend for a change) and disdains anyone who finds wearing sweats in public pathetic (read: anyone who hasn't given up on life). It's apparent that I am really over the main girl who is Clumsy And Dresses Like A Slob And Hates All Things That Seem Too Girly Including Other Girls And Whines A Lot About Everything.

I knew going into this that it would be short and silly and your typical teenage pool read. And it is. But after reading Suite Scarlett, which I found to be flufftacularly delightful, this just seemed a bit sloppy. The writing wasn't very tight, the characters never develop, the dialogue is more movie-like than real life. And that, I suppose, it just how the whole thing feels: like it's written solely to be made into yet another Disney starlett movie. Actually, I bet it already is one. A straight-to-dvd perhaps. I bet my little sister would know . . .

Also, it ends weird. Like how a chapter ends. Cliffhangers I can do, but this isn't really a cliffhanger. There is absolutely no resolution to anything, a new sub-plot has just begun, and BAM. Over. Please See Book 2. And I'm like, This obviously wasn't written to be a trilogy. (Rolling my eyes). Which is how I've heard about these books - the 3rd one recently came out people have been talking about them. And despite my unthrilledness with Airhead, I just might read the other two because of a charming secondary character, Lulu, who thinks that Em and Nikki had a "spirit transfer" a la Freaky Friday and isn't bothered by it in the least.

All in all, Meh in high heeled shoes.

Book source: Local library.

2 comments:

  1. I read another series by her and i can't remember what it was called and i'm too lazy to google it even though i'm using the computer right now. . .

    but it was about this girl that gets hit by lightning and then wakes up the next day psychic and the cops try to use them for their own purposes.

    it sounds like it was much better than this, but i'll be honest: probably not by much.

    the truth about meg cabot, i think, is that she's really not much of a writer.

    yeah, mean. but true. the it factor about her writing is nonexistant.

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  2. I'm beginning to see the truth in your words. The Wannabe Editor in me was dying a little through the whole book.

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