Popular, Maya Van Wagenen
Popular, Maya Van Wagenen
List: $18.99 | Sale: $13.29
Club: $9.49

Popular
Vintage Wisdom for a Modern Geek

Author: Maya Van Wagenen

Narrator: Amber Faith, Lee Adams

Unabridged: 6 hr 43 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Published: 04/15/2014

Includes: Bonus Material Bonus Material Included

Synopsis

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • WINNER OF THE YALSA AWARD • In this touchingly honest contemporary memoir, a middle-schooler entering high school firmly decides to become—wait for it—popular.

“Maya’s voice is fresh and frank, and her experiences at a middle school near the Mexican border provide an often overlooked perspective.”—Booklist

“Funny, determined, and wry.”—Rachel Hartman, bestselling author of Seraphina

Can curlers, girdles, Vaseline, and a strand of pearls help a shy girl become popular?

Maya Van Wagenen is about to find out.

Stuck near the bottom of the social ladder at “pretty much the lowest level of people at school who aren’t paid to be here,” Maya has never been popular. But before starting eighth grade, she decides to begin a unique social experiment: spend the school year following a 1950s popularity guide, written by former teen model Betty Cornell. The real-life results are hilarious, painful, and filled with unexpected surprises—but through it all, Maya’s positive approach helps her to reveal a new understanding of self-confidence, kindness, and acceptance.

About The Author

Maya Van Wagenen is sixteen years old. When she was eleven, her family moved to Brownsville, Texas, the setting of Popular. When not hunched over a desktop writing, Maya enjoys reading, British television, and chocolate. She now lives with her parents and two siblings in rural Georgia. She is a junior in high school.

Reviews

Goodreads review by Christine

<3 so much love for this book here's the video i made: [URL not allowed]......more

Goodreads review by Kristina

This book was so delightful, and so much better than I expected it to be! Maya's writing is a treat, and the message in this book - while absolutely perfect for younger readers - still rang true for me as well in my late twenties. I am so impressed this was written by a 15 year old. It's hard to bel......more

Goodreads review by emma

i (in case you weren't clued in by the fact that i am spending my friday night writing reviews of books i read 5 years ago) am not what anyone would describe as "popular." while i have hated every kind of social interaction for too long to want to change that, and therefore would never want to use th......more

Goodreads review by Sophia

3.5 stars it's hard to review this book because i want to review it like i review novels (works of fiction), but that wouldn't be very fair. overall, this book, in the end, shares a good message, despite having some issues with telling it in the most effective way.......more

Quotes

“I was inspired by her journey and made a point of saving a copy of ‘Popular’ for my sister, who starts middle school this fall. Maybe if I had read it when I was her age, it could have saved me from a world of hurt, or at least put that world in perspective.”—Maude Apatow, The New York Times Book Review

“Popular taps into a feeling shared by Bradbury and Bieber enthusiasts alike—the need to fit in during middle school.”—USA Today

“Everyone’s happiness project looks different, and I was utterly charmed by Maya Van Wagenen’s honest, funny, and thought-provoking account of her efforts to become ‘popular.’”—Gretchen Rubin, #1 bestselling author of The Happiness Project

“Geeky and dorky, but never wimpy, Maya Van Wagenen is as powerful and honest as she is quirky and funny—and startlingly gifted. She’s the real deal, folks, a teenage John Green for the next generation. Stunning.”—Margaret Stohl, bestselling co-author of the Beautiful Creatures series

“Maya Van Wagenen’s memoir, Popular, would have been wonderful to read as a kid, and so reassuring to Nerdy Teenage Me. Her year-long experiment in popularity is timeless; the intelligent and humane way she gets to the heart of the matter is uniquely her. Funny, determined, and wry, Van Wagenen has written a wise, heartfelt guide for other kids eager to keep up.”—Rachel Hartman, bestselling author of Seraphina

“An interesting and earnest memoir.”—Kirkus Reviews

“While completely appropriate for middle school readers, Popular is even more entertaining for adults. Van Wagenen is a uniquely gifted talent with a gem of a first novel”—VOYA

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