Spin the Bottle

by Elizabeth Cody Kimmel

Book Overview

Middle school is an Entirely New Planet. The girls look fully grown in the most glamorous and complicated ways, and the boys look . . . well, weird. The good news? Drama Club. Real Drama Clubawith actual auditions, and roles involving more than the days of the week. Phoebe Hart has waited a long time for this. The stage, after all, is the one place the aflawed and unremarkablea Phoebe can let her inner star out. But when she learns of the opening...

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0803731914
• ISBN13: 9780803731912
• Release Date: April 2008
• Publisher: Dial Books for Young Readers
• Length: 239 Pages
• Weight: 0.80 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.9" x 5.9" x 8.6"
• Age Range: 10 years and up
• Grade Range: Grade 5 and higher

Customer Reviews

Innocent and Fun for Young Girls

I quickly read through this just for the purpose of screening it for my eleven-year-old daughter (I am her 36-year-old father). I am happy to say that the book appears appropriate enough that I do not mind my daughter reading it. The story is about two friends (7th graders) that sign up for drama club and ultimately participate in a secret (secret to the kids that is) tradition of the company playing a game of spin the bottle after the first performance. I found the book innocent enough and true enough to life that it actually stirred some old childish emotions about my first kiss (kudos to the author for being able to move an adult male in what is obviously written for pre-teen females). I won't spoil the ending for you, but the main character has self-respect and integrity, and I was hoping that a coming-of-age story like this would reflect such values for my daughter. It does.

Courtesy of Teens Read Too

Welcome to Middle School. Everything you know about school, social politics, and life in general is about to change. Phoebe Hart has just started middle school and is on the way to fulfilling her dream of joining the Drama Club and being in a real school play. Now she is surrounded by the very people she has looked up to-- the elite of the Monroe Middle School Drama Club. She is filling her days with auditions, set building, and rehearsals. With her best friend, Harper, by her side, she is sure that the Drama Club will be everything she ever dreamed it would be. The problem is that middle school isn't like she planned. She is in a new building with older, more sophisticated girls. There are new classes, new classmates, new boys, and a rather unfortunate public display of nerves to deal with. Phoebe is also learning that the friendliest words of advice aren't necessarily spoken by people with the best intentions. Before long, she finds herself in the middle of an epic battle between two of the top divas in school. On top of that, she is trying to avoid another seventh-grader who seems determined to befriend her (which would totally ruin her cred with the older kids!). Then there's the argument with Harper and the cute boy who reduces her to a monosyllabic, babbling idiot. But the one looming problem that is shadowing Phoebe's days is the traditional game of Spin the Bottle that happens every year on opening night. As opening night draws closer, Phoebe is filled with excitement and dread. Will she finally have the chance to kiss her crush? What if the bottle points to someone else? Does she even really want to play? And if not, how does she get out of it? SPIN THE BOTTLE is definitely a good choice if you are looking for something fun to read. It is funny and the characters are so easy to identify with. Who hasn't been publicly humiliated at least once in middle school? It's just more fun to read about someone else's experience than to live your own! Reviewed by: JodiG.