One of the main reasons as to why I didn't really enjoy this because I just felt that this is for really a young audience and because of this, even the writing and plot felt childish and very exaggerated and made me not really want to carry on. It's not often you find South Asian rep in YA fiction, and I could definitely relate to some elements of Ellie's experience. Christine Pillainayagam brings humour and emotion to her debut, Ellie Pillai Is Brown, in a feel good coming-of-age gem.

Yesterday a parent came over to tell me how impressed she was by the book fair and that you did a fabulous job of selling the books to the children first. Her friends are cool, but she’s not that girl, in fact most of the time she goes about her life invisible to the rest of the school. Pillainayagam’s inclusion of lyrics in the book was genius, merging medias in that way worked so well. However, it is through the challenges of teenage life that Ellie begins to find herself, making this an extremely relatable book for upper school students. Maybe it's the new boy at school who makes her brain explode into rainbows every time she sees him (and also happens to be going out with her best friend), or maybe it's her new drama teacher, the one who seems to have noticed she exists.There are so many characters for readers to relate to, either entirely or partially, and I have no doubt that anyone who picks this book up will find something of themselves within it. They think she’s taking computer science when all along she’s been taking Mr Grange’s drama lessons…. My main critique was quite how much was packed in, including themes of dishonesty, low self esteem, grief, sexual assault, alcohol abuse, LGBTQ+ characters, post-child loss pregnancy, teacher crushes (!

She also uses the book to showcase her own talents as there is a downloadable album with tracks reflecting the chapter themes throughout the book, accessible by scanning the liberally spread QR codes. Polly Crosby tells ReadingZone about her novel, This Tale is Forbidden (Scholastic), a fractured fairy tale set in a dystopian world.Few unexpected incidents that tested their friendship, a new drama teacher who suddenly seems to notice her existence, also a romance encountered when Ash the new boy transferred to her school. And sadly only like one of those topics are given the time to develop, instead the rest feel rushed or just there to be a cliche. A draggy mid part with unnecessary dialogues/scenes (think it could actually be less than 400 pages?

An sich ist die Message ja ganz süß, dennoch wurde ähnliches eben schon in hundert anderen Coming of Age-Stories durchgekaut und das etwas besser, denn hier fehlt teilweise der rote Faden und ein ausdrucksstarkes Fazit.It also confronts what it’s like for girls of colour living in pro dominantly white area particularly in terms of self acceptance and romance, which I found again very relatable. A beautiful tale about how those around you, especially during your fragile adolescent years, can enrich your life, shape your ambitions and ultimately, provide the love you haven’t managed to give yourself yet. British YA can be hit or miss, often reading much younger than the ages of it's protagonists, so this was a risky purchase but the incredible printed edges on my edition persuaded me.

There was just the right amount of choice to suit everyone without being overwhelming and I received comments from parents and staff about the quality of books offered compared to previous sales which have always been based around current crazes and well known celebrity authors.

You guys were so fab and Dawn was such a lovely presence in the schools - I will absolutely be in touch next time I'm in your neck of the woods. She’s one of the few brown-skinned students at her school, and best friends with the school’s ‘it’ girl, Jess. There were so many times I was cringing but I think that’s just because I’m not the target audience. This is a long book, which is the only reason I rated it down a little - the story did start to drag in a couple of places.