Review: Lou! #1 Secret Diary by Julien Neel

SUMMARY FROM NETGALLEY.COM:

Meet Lou! She's hardly your average 12 year old. Her handmade outfits are the talk of the school (even though they make the other girls laugh), and her homework gets a lot of attention from her teachers (even though it lands her in the shrink's office). Home sweet home is an apartment she shares with her couch-potato mom and a cat named Cat. At least she can pour her heart out to her best friend, Mina, and scribble her dreams in her secret diary.

Now that she's almost a teenager, Lou's life is becoming even more interesting. Playing with dolls has lost its appeal and the boy across the street gets cuter every day. The new neighbor, Richard, just might be the perfect match for Lou's mom. But will Lou or her mom ever pluck up their courage and actually talk to their crushes?

MY TAKE:

I had a feeling I would enjoy this book. Guess what? I was right.

Lou is a rather unusual, creative girl. She has a close relationship with her mother whom she lives with in a small apartment. Lou! #1 Secret Diary focuses on their relationships and home life.

The graphic novel is very colorful and very artistic, just what you would expect from a creative almost-teenager's diary. The illustrations are cute and has a very Saturday morning cartoon feel to it. I don't think the story would work as a Saturday morning cartoon, though, but I can definitely imagine it as a Nickelodeon cartoon.

Lou is very funny and sarcastic, but at the same time, she's a really nice girl. She would be a cool little sister.

Thanks to NetGalley and Lerner Publishing Group for the e-ARC. Publication date for #1 Secret Diary is on April 1, 2012.

THE GOOD:

1. It's hilarious.
2. It's colorful, creative and the illustrations work well with the story.
3. It's the kind of book that makes you want to read the next one immediately.

THE BAD:

1. There were many moments when I felt like there should be a chapter break because the story suddenly moves forward in between pages.

FAVORITE QUOTE/S:

This is weird. For creative arts class, you didn't get a grade, just the address of a child psychiatrist.

READ IT IF:

1. You would like a good laugh.
2. You miss Daria (the television show).
3. You would like to take a peek into the mind and life of a 12-year-old girl.

RATING:



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