SPAIN OR SHINE by Michelle Jellen (2005)
Summary:
The rain in Spain falls mainly on plain Janes.
Elena is lost in the shuffle among her three overachieving siblings. But now that she's on her own for a whole semester, she intends to keep the spotlight all on herself -- and Spain is just the place to do it Once she starts living it up in tapas bars, lying out on the beach (even though it's November), and having a nice, long siesta smack-dab in the middle of every day, Elena finds that Spain is everything she hoped it would be. She's even met a to-fawn-over Spaniard, Miguel. But Elena has always been more comfortable writing plays than starring in them, and she's beginning to realize that keeping out of the spotlight has its perks too.
My review:
This is another of the Students Across the Seven Seas series. These are some of the best Young Adult books I have ever read. Elena could be me at a younger age. She wants to work behind the scenes. She wants adventure, but is shy. I loved the part of the story where she gets up the courage to visit her mother's family for the first time. She thinks she will be bored or they won't like her and finds out that people are people all over the world and family is definitely family. The love they have for her, even though they have never met her, is overwhelming. And when she has all her dreams come true, it's time to go back to the U.S.A. But she will never be the same.
I have to get more of these books. They are always a good read.
Thanks for the detailed review!!
ReplyDeleteI used to love to spend hours reading books by my favorite authors. I would take a shopping bag with me to the library. Sad to say, I can't do that now because I would fall asleep reading. Enjoy your books and have a wonderful day, hugs, Edna B.
ReplyDeleteNothing wrong with reading YA fiction as that's what Harry Potter was considered and I read all of the books in the series. Even though I most likely won't read this series, Kathy, glad you are enjoying the series.
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