Geekerella

Title: Geekerella retold by Ashley Poston

Image:

 

Genre: Romance, Fairy Tale

Justification:

          Fractured fairy tales are very popular. When looking for a young adult romance Geekerella (Once upon a Con #1) came up in a search. This book was rated 4.03 on goodreads and received 34,066 ratings and 7,803 reviews (goodreads, 2019). It was on the Spring 2017 Kids Indie Next List Pick, 2017 Goodreads Choice Award finalist for Best Young Adult Fictions, and Seventeens “12 Life-Changing Books you have to read this summer” list (Barnes and Noble, 2019). This romance and coming of age story are perfect for younger students because it does not become overly graphic.

Evaluation of the book:

The book shifts between two different points of view throughout the whole story. Each chapter has the characters name on the top when it is their point of view. As you read the story you can see the character develop and become flushed out. It also allows the readers to predict and infer what is going to happen. The author uses different voices for the two characters as well. Elle’s voice screams her insecurity while Darien’s voice shows his kindness and willingness to do whatever it takes. It also shows Darien’s fear. As readers it is nice to reminded that even people who act like superheroes have fears.

The characters are a mix of dynamic and static. Catherine and Chloe are static. They remain the same throughout the book. Chloe and Danielle however are dynamic characters. They change and shift as the book is read. Danielle or Elle begins the book as standoff. She does not trust anyone and has no friendships. As the book progresses, she becomes more trusting and open. She stops closing herself in. As Sage and her form, a relationship she shares information about herself. The surprising dynamic character is Chloe. Although, she has a minor role the reader learns that she is not evil. This character development allows the reader to make connections and change assumptions and misconceptions.

          The plot of this story is a fractured fairy tale. It begins with a “evil” stepmother and a character who must take care of everything. However, this shows more redeemable characters. The Elle character is not as submissive as the traditional fairy tale. She has small rebellions such as working for “The Magic Pumpkin” and watching her show. She also hides peanut butter for herself and saves the dog. This story however had all the elements of the classic fairy tale as well. There is a character named Ella, a Prince charming, a magic pumpkin, and a fairy godmother. Each of these elements were modernized including diverse, culturally relevant character.

Response:

          (d) This book does a great job representing diversity. Poston uses a diverse set of characters to tell her story. She uses main characters from different races, as well as lesbian characters. This is wonderful to see. She makes sure that everyone is represented and does not white wash the characters. She also does a good job of writing a fairy tale with a modern-day twist. (g) When she uses blogs and comic-cons to tell her story it helps the reader understand the story. This applies well to teens in a world of vloggers and bloggers. She tackles feelings of insecurity, the struggle to make and keep friends, and how important it to not shut the world out. This is refreshing to see. (e) The text does start slowly. In traditional Cinderella stories the disdain for the stepmother begins almost immediately. In this story it comes slower. The reader has more empathy for the stepmother. As she sits at the table upset about the Comic con it becomes apparent that she feels guilt that she could never connect in that way. This was in interesting way to handle the situation. It made the reader see that not all characters are fully bad.

Conclusion:

          This was an enjoyable read. It would be great for young adults. The book is full of diversity and well-developed characters. Its focus on comic-cons and superheroes is applicable to a modern-day audience. This book will connect with multiple young adults. The book features multiple viewpoints, strong characters, and an easy to follow plot. This book is the first in a series and I am excited to see what the rest of the series holds.

Citation:

Barnes and Noble. (2019, October 23). Geekerella (Once Upn a Con Series 1). Retrieved from Barnes and Noble: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/geekerella-ashley-poston/1123918421?ean=9781683690436#/

goodreads. (2019, October 22). Geekerella. Retrieved from goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/30724132-geekerella

The University of Texas at El Paso. (n.d.). How to Write a Reaction Paper or Reader Response. Retrieved from Reader Response: http://utminers.utep.edu/omwilliamson/engl0310link/readerresponse.htm