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3.0 out of 5 stars
Ha ha, I just reread this, Mar 4 2004
I used to love Sweet Valley High books as a child. I would wait breathlessly for them to come out every month and sometimes cry if they didn't come out on the expected date. (Yes, I had too much spare time). This mini-series, especially had me on the edge of my seat.
Recently, I got this book for a buck off e-bay for nostalgic purposes and just for kicks. I have a couple of things to say about it now.
The plot is generic drama. Elizabeth and Jessica are preparing for a beach party the very special night that Jessica gets "the perfect tan" and inspiration strikes. They can have a jungle themed prom and have a popular environmental group sponsor it!!!!!!!!! They go to expand on the idea and fringe benefits such as a trip to Brazil and a position as a spokesperson for a greener world are offered to the future prom queen.
Therefore, Jessica and Elizabeth begin a bitter quarrel for the title of prom queen where compromise is impossible. They act like this is more than a school dance, and is the antidote to their ridiculous, half developed personalities. This book breathlessly chronicals their angry showdown and throws in a couple of side stories involving Lila and Bruce and their own petty little problems involving death and attempted date-rape. I couldn't believe how shallow and vapid my two favorite twins seemed. Jessica is really the most nauseatingly ego-tistical little idiot who floats through life forgetting about everything and expecting everything to come her way. Her entire attitude throughout the book is "OH, I can't wait to be prom queen!" Unfortunately, Elizabeth wasn't much better. She tilted off keel on the other extreme from freaking out about small things. (Her sister was dared to swim out to the buoy at a beach party and Elizabeth ran up and down the beach trying to figure out how to save her poor little sister swimming in the dark ocean. She even decided to go borrow this guy's surf board and paddle out and get her.) I read that and thought, oh come on... Then we come to the finale. Everything happens like it was stacked like a triple helping of fate served up in the stars. Jessica spikes Elizabeth's drink, with what? Rubbing alcohol? I can't think of half a glass of anything, even hard liquor that would mess someone up so severely that they couldn't walk and were slurring their words in such a drunken way. So how big was that punch cup?? Because from what I remember, most punch glasses aren't very big. And the ending..what are the chances of that really happening? Oh well, this is a young adult novel. As a sidenote, I was pleasantly surprised by some of the secondary characters. Lila actually made pretty good sense most of the time. I almost applauded her when she was sunbathing in Jessica's backyard, and she mentally commented on how "immature and nauseating" Jessica's behavior actually was. Bruce wasn't so bad either.
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by Francine Pascal
by Francine Pascal
by Francine Pascal
by Francine Pascal
by Francine Pascal
