Spin the Bottle

Pheobe Hart, a total Drama Geek, can't wait to enter middle school for a single reason: Drama Club, the place where she is meant to be. There, she'll frolick among her fellow actors and actresses (including the 9th grade legends that she idolizes), and they'll do real plays without dancing days of the week and vomiting chickens. Pheobe feels super-lucky, what with her best friend Harper joining the club with her, and the cool 9th-grade president taking a liking to her. And then the drama begins-onstage and off: Pheobe and Harper get into a fight, Pheobe has a badly-timed "Digestive Malfunction" onstage and blows her audition, causing her to get a crummy part in the school production of Guys and Dolls, she seems to come across as an idiot every time her "OOMA" (Object of My Affection-basically, her crush) tries to talk to her, and there's something up with the 9th graders being so nice to her. Oh, and the fact that Pheobe learns that the opening-night tradition is to play Spin the Bottle-and she has no boy or kissing experience whatsoever! And what if the bottle lands on her crush? Does he even like her, anyway? Will the production be a success? And can Pheobe work out all the drama before the curtain rises? 

   Elizabeth Cody Kimmel (the author of the hysterical Lily B. books) has created another frank and funny novel that shows she knows what it's like to be a girl. Middle grade readers ages 11-14 will adore the great set of characters and well-written chapters of this light (but enjoyable) read.