May 1, 2004
Gr 9 Up-The sequel to the The A-List (Little, Brown, 2003) is a combination of Sex and the City and The Women, complete with backbiting, sabotage, gossip, and scheming set in La La land where overprivileged, poor-little-rich-girls endlessly indulge themselves. Though the issues and scenes are current, the book reads like fantasy as this much intrigue would wear out even the most devious, superficial girl-on-the-go. The one stable figure in this milieu is Anna Percy, an East-Coast transplant who ventures to California to change her good-girl image, but who finds that she doesn't have the stomach for the escapades of her peers. Trying to get over her powerful crush on Ben Birnbaum, a guy she views as all wrong for her, and attempting to settle with Adam, the good guy who just doesn't light her fire, Anna is caught between her heart, body, and mind. Dean's dialogue is flip and slick, and all of the characters have a rapid-fire wit that makes for page-turning, guilty pleasure. Girls on Film is a fast-clipped, juicy read that picks up where The A-List left off, and those who haven't read the first installment are quickly brought up to speed. Irresistible mind candy that teens will devour.-Tracy Karbel, Glenside Public Library District, Glendale Heights, IL
Copyright 2004 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.