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April 4, 2005
Like The Secret Blog of Raisin Rodriguez
(reviewed below), Vega's first novel centers on a middle-school narrator whose secret blog is made public. But this is not the first thing that happens to Erin Swift: First, she gets put on a different track at school from her pretty, popular best friend, Jilly, and on the first day, Erin punches a mean girl who says, "Jillian is Gepetto, the master puppeteer, and you're Pinocchio" (which leads to more Pinocchio taunting from her classmates). Erin, who dreams of becoming a webmaster, chronicles her humiliations, and her increasing autonomy in her "personal, private, no one-will-see-but-me web page"(her blog entries run between chapters). Erin's narration is less silly than Raisin's (in Secret Blog
), which makes her problems more painful to read, from watching her crush kiss Jilly for at least "four Mississippi" on the school bus, to her frustration at Jilly's narcissism. And while readers may find some of the dialogue scripted, and wonder what Erin saw in Jilly to begin with, they will certainly sympathize with the heroine when her most private moments (she practices kissing her pillow and says she hates her best friend) accidentally surface on the school Intranet. Overall, this is a heartfelt book about a girl becoming her own person. Ages 8-12.

May 1, 2005
Gr 5-7 -Erin Swift, who is beginning middle school, keeps a diary on her own private Web page, which she never intends to post on the Internet. The year gets off to a rough start when she discovers that she and her best friend, Jilly, will not have any classes together. Then Erin punches her archenemy, Serena, for calling her Jilly's puppet. Worst of all, Erin begins to wonder if she does follow Jilly's wishes instead of her own and resolves to make some new friends and pursue her own interests. Things become more difficult when the boy Erin secretly likes becomes infatuated with Jilly. The only bright spot is the Intranet Club, where her computer skills earn her a lead role in designing the school's new Web site. Then disaster strikes when Erin's secret Web page is accidentally posted on the school Intranet for everyone to read. Suddenly, she is faced with her biggest problem yet. The characters and situations are believable, and readers will relate to and sympathize with Erin's dilemmas. Entries from the diary supplement the first-person narrative, an approach that works well with the story. The Erin at the end of the semester is hardly recognizable from the earlier Erin, and the result is pleasing to everyone." -Linda L. Plevak, Saint Mary's Hall, San Antonio, TX"

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