Title: Violet on the Runway
Author: Melissa Walker
Pages: 220
Berkeley Jam, 2007
Genre: Realistic Fiction
Recommended to: Girls, 13 and up
Rating: A
Violet Greenfield is used to being a wallflower at her North Carolina high school. Sick of standing out because of her extremely tall height, she just wants to get her senior year of high school over as painfully as possible and maybe even befriend the Bee's Knees--the most popular girls in school, a secret ambition of Violet's.
But one day when Violet meets an agent from a modeling business and is told that she could be the next big thing, her life changes forever and she is whisked into a world of fashion, glamour, beauty, and deceiving appearances in New York City. But between fashion shoots, romance, drama, and the hardships the media's pressure on a model, will Violet be able to remember where she came from and who her true friends are? The fashion business isn't as easy and innocent as it seems....
Wow! I was totally surprised by how much I really loved Melissa Walker's novel. Fresh, unique, and sincere, I was a bit bored at first but the pace immediately picked up and the action flowed quickly. One of the things I most appreciated about this novel was how to-the-point and realistic Ms. Walker was: she didn't skimp on the details, and told the reader how the modeling business really was, even if it was dark, shocking, and not so glamorous. All the characters were so awesome and well-developed so that they felt like real people: Roger, Aunt Rita, Angela, Veronica, Julie, even Violet herself.
Which leads me to my next point: Violet's character. I loved seeing how a girl with such low-self esteem blossomed into a confident, kick-butt character. Readers will immediately be able to relate to Violet's insecurities and will be rooting for her until the end like I was! I also loved how Violet was realistic and just a normal girl deep down: someone who likes ice cream, is self-conscious about herself, and has her own problems and fears.
From the middle on, the fast-paced action, glittering glamour, and drama will have readers madly flipping pages until the end. Overall, I was very satisfied with this extremely well-written book with a refreshing look into the high-stakes world of fashion and am more than excited to begin book number two, Violet by Design! Very well done, Melissa! (:
6 comments:
Ooooh, I liked this book a lot!!!
Sounds good! Nice review!
My favorite part about this series is that Violet never fully loses her insecurities. I mean, she gets more confident but she stays very real as a character. We all have insecurities and it's important to show that in a book.
Great review! And I think you'll really love the other two books in the series. :)
Yay I'm a huge fan of this series. Lovelovelove them!
Great review and couldn't agree more. Melissa is such a talented writer and this series simply rocks!
Thanks so much for the review, Bookworm! And I'm so glad you liked it! I also appreciate the constructive criticism about the slow beginning--I'm working on that with a new book... sometimes you want to just dive into the action, right? :)
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