I Was a Non-Blonde Cheerleader [Library Binding]

Our main heroine is new to the school and to the cheerleading squad. She also happens to be one of the only students who is not blonde in this Florida high school.

This book starts off with a bang. By introducing the lead character into a new school, full of "Britney Spears" wannabes. You can actually imagine Annissa, short haired AND brunette (how dare she) trying to figure out how she is going to survive her year at the new school.

She is pitted against these wannabes who are determined to make her life as difficult as possible. On top of all that, they are part of the cheerleading squad that Annissa wants to join.

What ensues is a bunch of exchanges between the parties and funny (sometimes not so funny) events and overall a great storyline.

Mind you, the storyline has been DONE before, but it is well written and fun to read.

I was really into it until about 3/4 of the book when things get horribly mushy and extremely predictable. This, I did not care for so much. The author could have made the ending a tad less predictable. Which would have added more depth to the book.

Otherwise, it was a great read.

Sixteen-year-old sophomore, Annisa Gobrowski, was more than happy living her life in New Jersey, where she had actual friends, and wasn't the only brunette in sight. But it's a known fact that when you're happy, something depressing is bound to happen. And that's how Annisa ended up in Florida, trying to fit in at a high school - Sand Dune High School, to be exact - filled with blondes, where she is the only one who hasn't yet reached for a box of Herbal Essences Amazon Gold. Annisa quickly finds that she sticks out like a sore-thumb. Not only because of her hair color, but due to the fact that she has made friends with Daniel Healy, a guitar-playing, football-wrestling-track star, who just happens to have a popular girlfriend on the varsity cheerleading squad. And, as if that isn't bad enough, Annisa sheer clumsiness caused her to break the nose of the most popular girl in school. But not even all of these strikes against her can stop Annisa from doing what she loves, and that's becoming a Sand Dune cheerleader. The only thing the squad doesn't know, is that Annisa is out to prove to them that she can cheer just as well as they can, they just don't know it yet.

I adored Kieran Scott's first novel JINGLE BOY - in fact, it's one of my all-time favorite books ever. So I was enthralled to find out about the release of her newest novel I WAS A NON-BLONDE CHEERLEADER. While the storyline is a bit cliched at times, and is very reminiscent of the movie BRING IT ON, it poses it's own set of situations that the main character must overcome, which truly brings the story, and it's characters to life. Annisa is a fun, spirited girl, whose sharp tongue can get the best of anybody, which is a fun thing to see in a teen novel, as many of the books on the teen lit market feature meek girls, who don't always speak up for themselves or what's right. Once again, Kieran Scott has created another fun novel, that will live on in the readers mind for years to come.

Erika Sorocco

Book Review Columnist for The Community Bugle Newspaper

i absaluty luvvvedd this book! by the first word i was hooked. i swear my family was getting annoyed with me coz all i was doin was hiding my head in this amazing book. i luved annisa, she was hilarious, and how they all ended up friends in the end. this is 110% awesome!! i recomend this book to everyone!