How to be Popular by Meg Cabot

Do you want to be popular? Everyone wants to be popular or at least, Stephanie Landry does. Steph's been the least popular girl in her class since a certain cherry Super Big Gulp catastrophe five years earlier. Does being popular matter? It matters very much to Steph. That's why this year, she has a plan to get in with the It Crowd in no time flat. She's got a secret weapon: an old book called what else? How to Be Popular. What does it take to be popular? All Steph has to do is follow the instructions in The Book, and soon she'll be partying with the It Crowd (including school quarterback Mark Finley) instead of sitting on The Hill Saturday nights, stargazing with her nerdy best pal Becca, and even nerdier Jason (now kind of hot, but still), whose passion for astronomy Steph once shared. Who needs red dwarves when you're invited to the hottest parties in town? But don't forget the most important thing about popularity! It's easy to become popular. What isn't so easy? Staying that way.

This book was a perfect summer read. I think I finished it in two days flat (between working and hitting the beach that's pretty good for me!). This isn't my first Meg Cabot read so I already had high expectations and this book met them. I'm not sure what it is about her writing, but it just connects with me; making her books super easy to read without getting bored or sidetracked.

All the characters are solid. Even the side characters are intriguing, so when it wasn't focused all on Steph I was still entertained. I liked the idea of a girl standing up for herself, especially after she was bullied for 5 years for essentially no reason. It is a bit of a stretch for me to believe that after 5 years someone is finally done taking everyone else's crap and ready to fight back just because she found a book on how to be popular, but I guess anything is possible.

The overall plot is not newsworthy. The 'twist' at the end is what you're expecting as the reader so it is satisfactory but predictable. Overall, I really liked this book. It was fun to read about instant messaging like it was a 'hot new thing' and the fashion described was such a throwback that I really enjoyed getting a glimpse into Steph's everyday life.