Lele Pons Was Never Funny Vine Tom Harlock
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"I wasn't always sexy, cool and popular".
Aaaaand I'm out. Byyeeeee.
First sentence?"I wasn't always sexy, cool and popular".
Aaaaand I'm out. Byyeeeee.
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I received a copy in exchange for an honest review.
I remember seeing Surviving High School by Lele Pons and Melissa de la Cruz at the bookstore I work at and being excited because it looked like a fun and quirky read. Well, I finally got my hands on a copy and the book is definitely quirky, but in no way fun.
At first, I wanted to give this book the benefit of the doubt. I know, from my limited knowledge of her videos, that Pons is an awkward comi
Review also appeared on my blog: Book Addict 24-7I received a copy in exchange for an honest review.
I remember seeing Surviving High School by Lele Pons and Melissa de la Cruz at the bookstore I work at and being excited because it looked like a fun and quirky read. Well, I finally got my hands on a copy and the book is definitely quirky, but in no way fun.
At first, I wanted to give this book the benefit of the doubt. I know, from my limited knowledge of her videos, that Pons is an awkward comic who puts herself in certain situations for a laugh. This translated strangely into her novel, but rather than being endearing and comedic, it was just plain awkward and frustrating.
The first thing I want to focus on is the protagonist herself, who is also named Lele. When the first line comments on her physical appeal, I thought that she was being ironic or obviously joking, but as the novel continues and fails to change all the way through to the end, I realized that maybe, just maybe (and I mean 99.9 %) this character is completely full of herself. Instead of appearing quirky, the character acts completely conceited before she's famous and even more so afterwards.
You might say, "But Dayla, that's part of the character growth!" But here's the bit that I just can't believe: there is basically no character growth, whatsoever. The only way we can distinguish any change is by Lele mentioning that she's the 2.0-9.0 version of herself, but honestly? She's just as conceited and immature at the end as she is at the beginning.
The immature nature of this novel only brings to focus the attempts at humour. Lele (The character) prides herself on being different and weird and acts accordingly, but instead of seeing someone adorable or charming, I saw someone who was trying way too hard to be funny. I honestly couldn't understand how her crush didn't react more realistically to her random outbursts. I also don't honestly understand how someone like this character can become so popular--but hey, fame, right?
The side characters were treated as just that--sides. We barely get any information regarding Lele's friends, other than that one is hot, foreign, and has a little sister, and the other is black, smart, and sassy. This is truly a one-girl show. Her so-called rival is someone who is explained away using Latino stereotypes and petty jealousy, while the other girls are shown to be self-centered, sex-obsessed, rich girls. Don't even get me started on the amount of shit Lele got away with when it came to her parents. At the risk of countering a point I just made, I will pull from my own experiences as a Latina: I find it interesting that the common stereotype of us liking Reggaeton is introduced, but not that of strict parents. If I did half the stuff this girl does at her age, my parents would have had me locked up for life. It's just so unrealistic and strange.
One of my main concerns with this novel is that it has no apparent storyline. Events happen, but what are they leading towards? Yes, she gets a bunch of followers, but what is actually happening? Where is this going? There is no real character growth, there is a barely there climax, and there's laughable conflicts. Even the romance is lackluster. The whole story felt like it lost steam before it began and was just a series of "then this happened, then this happened, etc." Each chapter read like a Vine: a few pages of randomness that struggled to be cohesive. I know that this book is introduced as a fictional memoir, but holy hell, even those have basic storylines--especially because it's fiction.
Surviving High School is a very quick read, but mainly because I spent most of my time scanning the pages. I was so bored at one point and frustrated that I just wanted it to end.
Everyone has different interests and should read whatever the hell they want, but I strongly recommend either reading the first few pages at the bookstore before you buy it, or borrow it from the library. This is an expensive book with very little story told from the perspective of an entitled and self-centered teenager.
Happy reading!
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Oh God. This book is actually horrific. It's been a while since a book offended me as much as this (look at whatever is on my DNF shelf). I genuinely thought this was going to be a cute, fun, quick, summer read. I mostly wanted to read it because of Melissa de la Cruz, because I've never actually heard of Lele Pons (and I REALLY hope Surviving High School IS just a fictionalised memoir, because Lele does not come across well).
The fictional Lele is one of the most big-headed, weird
DNFed at 20%.Oh God. This book is actually horrific. It's been a while since a book offended me as much as this (look at whatever is on my DNF shelf). I genuinely thought this was going to be a cute, fun, quick, summer read. I mostly wanted to read it because of Melissa de la Cruz, because I've never actually heard of Lele Pons (and I REALLY hope Surviving High School IS just a fictionalised memoir, because Lele does not come across well).
The fictional Lele is one of the most big-headed, weird people I've ever met. She talks in nothing but pop culture (it's like the Breakfast Club/I'm so "pwning" this day/any kind of twenty-first century pop culture you can think of is thrown in, including The Weeknd's Can't Feel My Face (and she loves it)). If you did a shot for every pop culture reference you'd be drunk SUPER QUICK. I only read a fifth of the book and the pop culture was everywhere.
Lele just does not come across well. I stopped reading when she started going on about how Alexei (who she's known for about three days) hadn't asked her out, because she was "pretty but not pretty enough". I legitimately hate girls who say stuff like that. It's my biggest pet peeve, because all you need to do is google Lele to know she's absolutely gorgeous, and maybe you'll come back and say to me that she didn't always look like that, but I doubt in her first year of high school she was a hag. Braces do not suddenly make you ugly, OK? For me that was my breaking point. I was just like, "Nope I can't do this."
The voice was just all over the place. The need to input so much pop culture - which means that this book will age super fast. The fact that Lele is just wow so full of herself, then in the next breath she's not "pretty enough" is enough to give you whiplash. It was just so inconsistent. Her parents were super chill, super cool, hip and happening, etc, but then she was like screaming at them about a party? And she had a bad day and just started literally screaming in school. WHO DOES THAT? This was just so bad. I have no idea what input Melissa de la Cruz had because she's a far superior writer to the tiny bit I read here. It was like a five year old's stream of conscious was just let loose, with no filter.
Just nope.
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272 pages (of pure suckage!)
LeLe (pronounced Leh-Leh) Pons is a famous Vines girl. She apparently became very popular due to her videos. I searched her videos on YouTube as Vines is no longer in existence and I watched some of her videos to get to know the girl behind this book. What can I say??? Her YouTube videos stink and her book completely sucks!! It was just plain stupid. What is supposed to be her HS experience....is so clearly overly exaggerated and again...stupid.
Surviving High School272 pages (of pure suckage!)
LeLe (pronounced Leh-Leh) Pons is a famous Vines girl. She apparently became very popular due to her videos. I searched her videos on YouTube as Vines is no longer in existence and I watched some of her videos to get to know the girl behind this book. What can I say??? Her YouTube videos stink and her book completely sucks!! It was just plain stupid. What is supposed to be her HS experience....is so clearly overly exaggerated and again...stupid. I forced myself to continue reading this book although my eyes and brains were begging me to toss the book in the garbage. Please....if you haven't read the book...save yourself the time & pick up another book. I don't recommend it at all!!!!!
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I don't even know where to begin with this piece of trash that is allegedly a book. One of the worst things an author can do is make the main character unlikable and just plain old agitating and annoying. And that's exactly what Melissa de la Cruz and Lele Pons manage to do. The fictional Lele is one of the worst characters I've ever read in a book! Oh the ego on this girl!! It's almost unbearable! I nearly had to put down the book several times just because of how rude, egotistical, annoying, narcissistic Lele is! Some of the stuff she does and thinks and says is just appalling! When she kept calling herself sexy and pretty and famous, I just wanted to throw my book across my room and go "nope". Like does the concept of being humble not understood to Lele? Honestly is it not? I would think that it wasn't after reading this.
Fictional Lele came off to me as just a horrible person. The Lele on vine seems like a fun, likable person who I'd love to be friends with. But after reading this I wouldn't want to be near even the real Lele with a 10 foot pole.
After reading about half of the book, I wanted to watch some Lele Pons vines, to drown out the horrible Lele I've been suffering through reading about. But I found when I was reading that Lele's vines weren't as funny or good. This book ruined one of my favorite entertainers for me, that alone is a crime.
Another crime in this book is the dialogue. Oh the dialogue!! It is hands-down the worst dialogue I've ever had to read! I am a huge dialogue person, I love dialogue especially when it is clever and smart and funny. But with this book, the dialogue could've been better written by cavemen. It's that bad. The dialogue between characters was so awkward and uncomfortable I felt like I was reading about those stupid awkward middle school plays where the kids can't act.
Surviving High School has ruined Lele Pons for me, it's boring, dull, annoying, has a horrible main character and horrendous dialogue. I also had to force myself to read this book, each chapter was an accomplishment. That's a problem that I feel like I did something impossible by just finishing a simple chapter in a book. I honestly regret ever buying this book. Do yourself a favor and do not read this book under any circumstances.
I had to force myself to read this book (why I did, I don't know honestly).
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mind my language, but this isn't a book; it is the aftermath of the author having a massive jerk-off on how perfect she believes she is because she's popular on a dead social media platform (lmao)... juvenile juvenile juvenile
LIKE.... at one point the protagonist (who is 'based' off lele pons and is even NAMED lele (but it's not autobiographical!!!! she'll remind you this multiple times !!!!)) sets her 'friends' test on literal fire
tried to read this as a joke, but god, this is beyond ghastlymind my language, but this isn't a book; it is the aftermath of the author having a massive jerk-off on how perfect she believes she is because she's popular on a dead social media platform (lmao)... juvenile juvenile juvenile
LIKE.... at one point the protagonist (who is 'based' off lele pons and is even NAMED lele (but it's not autobiographical!!!! she'll remind you this multiple times !!!!)) sets her 'friends' test on literal fire because she got an a grade and lele only got a d. it would've been HILARIOUS, if author!lele had followed this up with a literal SHRED of remorse, but alas...she actually thought she was within reason and thought that because she was 'popular' (with a bunch of ten year olds online) she could get away with that with no consequences. turns out though, there ARE no consequences for story!lele which..... isn't that a GREAT message to send to her younger audience, who would probably pick this up out of general curiosity. ANYWAY...
i would recommend to read this for shits and gigs, but honestly, the writing is so fucking awful, i had to take a nurophen to calm the raging headache this self-wank provoked
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This book is full of the usual teenage problems: fitting in, boy crushes, popularity, etc. It is told in a way that is very easy for teenagers to relate to. This will definitely be a HUGE favorite for teenage girls. Brought me back to my awkward days of high school. It was like taking a trip down memory lane. I wouldn't want to be a teenager in today's world. The pressure is high. There is so much more to cope with and worry about with social media. Everyone is watching and judging every second of your life.
The story moved along very smoothly and quickly. It was easy to read and the chapters were broken down just right. They were just the right length. This is one of thise books that you can fly through. It was a fun read. The dialogue was very easy to follow and written in an way that is easy for teenagers to relate to.
I would highly recommend this book to those teenage girls who feel socially awkward and are just trying to find a way to cope with the stress of every day high school life. Lele will put your mind at ease and help you feel more relaxed knowing you are not the only one who has to go through these struggles. It is a fun read to get you through the struggles of every day life and help you feel a bit better about life in general.
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first of all the main character is just plain annoying and i don't think i've ever had that much trouble with a character in my life, I'm trying not to make this sound mean or anything but none of these characters were worth my time.
there is
I regret buying this book, I think next time i will really have to read the back of the book before buying it which in this case i didn't look at the back and i just brought it. I'm not sure why it didn't click when i seen 'Lele' the vine star on the cover.first of all the main character is just plain annoying and i don't think i've ever had that much trouble with a character in my life, I'm trying not to make this sound mean or anything but none of these characters were worth my time.
there is nothing in this book that could change how bad this was and even having a new york bestselling author didn't help how terrible this book was.
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I had the chance to promote this book in April (Book Blitz), and ever since then I have wanted to read this book, and I finally had a chance to do so!
At times it was a bit confusing (as I still have no clue what Vine is, or how it works, not because I am ancient, but because I just never have an interest in stuff like that), at times I was frustrated with Lele (especially when she became more and more famous), but mostly I loved and laughed a lot.
Lele, our MC, is just s
This was such a fun book!I had the chance to promote this book in April (Book Blitz), and ever since then I have wanted to read this book, and I finally had a chance to do so!
At times it was a bit confusing (as I still have no clue what Vine is, or how it works, not because I am ancient, but because I just never have an interest in stuff like that), at times I was frustrated with Lele (especially when she became more and more famous), but mostly I loved and laughed a lot.
Lele, our MC, is just starting a new year at a new school. She is a bit awkward (but then again, who isn't), but she is also a fun, happy character with a very outgoing (and sometimes dramatic) personality. We see how she lives through school, how she tries to make friends, tries to find a place to belong, all the while making funny Vine videos about her life and about all sorts of things. I loved how sweet she was, and how kind. I also laughed so much at how she saw life, and how funny she was. I could just imagine her sitting next to me and telling me her story.
But around halfway, or maybe better, when the fame started to pick up, I was getting a bit annoyed with her. At first it was cute, and I was definitely happy that she was getting more famous (she deserved it as she made hilarious videos with hilarious topics), but on the other hand... she started to not care about school (even more than she normally does), she acted all important, and several other things. I just wanted to smack her to get her back to normal Lele, because that girl was way more fun, and much nicer.
Luckily, later on she gets back to her more normal way of being Lele, and I was delighted that she finally saw the light and didn't go all fame crazy.
I did like Lele parents and how sweet they were together. Though I think they were a bit lax on the whole party thing, and her not studying that much part. Live and let live and let you kid decide on her own is a nice philosophy, but really, you need to put a bit more weight behind things. They did say some stuff, but it just felt like they were reciting some script. An education is an important thing, you never know how long popularity lasts, or how long your videos will make people keep watching. Fame is fleeting.
The Alexei x Lele parts were fun, and cute, though I didn't really see the chemistry that was supposed to be so apparent. If anything I preferred them staying friends. It just felt oh so awkward when stuff started to head to the romantic direction. Plus Lele changed so much, I do hope she won't treat all her boyfriends like this otherwise she is in for a cat lady existence. :|
I loved how the beginning of the chapters had the amount of subscribers, plus a hilarious title on what was going on in the chapter.
Darcy was definitely my favourite character next to Lele. She was so sweet, smart, and fun. And I was amazed at her patience with Lele. :P
What more? Mm, well I just flew through this book and I loved a lot of the book. I laughed, I read quotes aloud to my boyfriend (who in turn laughed, or in case of the airhorn + annoying car owner, was agreeing with it all).
All in all, I would highly recommend this book to everyone. Even if you are like me (no clue who Lele Pons is, or what Vine is) you will love this book.
Review first posted at https://twirlingbookprincess.com
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Lele is a little crazy. a lot insecure, fairly self-involved--in other words, a pretty typical teenager who just happens to make video
Entertaining, in a train-wreck kind of way--it's hard to stop reading, even when Lele goes a little (okay, more than a little) bit off the rails. Short, short chapters (a la James Patterson) make it a really fast read. If you're a fan of Lele on Vine, you'll probably really enjoy it. If you've never heard of Vine, you're probably not part of the intended audience.Lele is a little crazy. a lot insecure, fairly self-involved--in other words, a pretty typical teenager who just happens to make videos on Vine that strike a chord with people. A LOT of people. This book is a "fictional memoir" of the real Lele Pons--inspired by her life but not her actual story. I liked the chapter titles--at least some of them are titles from her videos, so I suspect they might all be--and the way we can watch her "followers" grow as the story progresses. I appreciated the fact that even though she went to a lot of parties she didn't drink much if at all (as she points out, she already acts drunk while sober--people drink to keep up with her) and when young girls would stop her in the street or at the mall she tried to give them good advice. It's definitely a more positive look at fame than we often see--it's not sugar-coated (see "Partied Out"), but she's also not all about what it can do for her. Not all the time, anyway. I did like when her shoe collection grew from 2 pairs to 15 in a single shopping trip--live the dream!
I don't know how much of the book was Ms. Pons and how much was Ms. de la Cruz, but the result was a fun collaboration. It's definitely not for everyone, but again, if you're a fan, you'll probably get a kick out of it. I'm definitely not part of the target audience, but it did have me laughing out loud more than once, and I can now say that I've watched a half dozen of her videos ("When you leave your crush alone with your mom"--a cautionary tale for the ages.)
Rating: 3 1/2 stars / C+
I received a complimentary copy in exchange for an honest review.
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I wouldn't say it is insanely well written, it's very colloquial- but in the most fun way. Teenage girls would enjoy this for sure.
I personally loved this book because I felt as if I'd written it. The author, Lele Pons, is from Venezuela and the same age as me so I related to almost every single thing she wrote. I'm pretty convinced we are actually soul sisters.I wouldn't say it is insanely well written, it's very colloquial- but in the most fun way. Teenage girls would enjoy this for sure.
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Even more honest, I simply saw the review by Tom Harlock and decided that it was a detailed perfection and that so many people liked it that it was enough for me to make a judgment from the overall understanding of books and my vast expanse collected and read already. I don't have the time to waste on garbage books that are given "free" publication because the writer has some insignificant significant status in social media outlets. Thanks but NO.
Additional
Honestly, DID NOT EVEN READ THE BOOK.Even more honest, I simply saw the review by Tom Harlock and decided that it was a detailed perfection and that so many people liked it that it was enough for me to make a judgment from the overall understanding of books and my vast expanse collected and read already. I don't have the time to waste on garbage books that are given "free" publication because the writer has some insignificant significant status in social media outlets. Thanks but NO.
Additionally, writing a novel (fictional work here) is about characterization and entertainment: so why the hell is the character's name the authors name? Why is the story about the author? Is that not a memoir? This is the reason that people are not reading anymore. Someone might pick this trash up one day, not knowing anything about the author, and realize that fiction novels are complete trash and forever give up because a pretentious Youtuber, fake singer, decided it was a good idea to make money from a platform that is not in their lane.
There are writers struggling to make a living. They strive for a chance from a publishing house. Not just me, but millions of writers. But that chance is past over to these famed entertainers (with an already built audience). I believe Tom Harlock in his review because he speaks in a way that is knowledgeable with acceptable grammar. Otherwise, I would have read this book to form an opinion that is complete. But luckily he shared paragraphs and the main plotline to make this decision of adding as a "read" book on Goodreads.
My final thoughts are, if this author is so good why hasn't she published a book since then??
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The whole story is written by the perspective of Lele. Although Lele Pons is apparently a big internet personality via her astonishing and record breaking success on the Vine platform, I had never heard of her or of the Vine. To make matters worse, we are told that this volume, although closely linked to Lele's rise on the Vine, is not an auto-biography but rather a fictional one, which means that
Surviving High School by Lele Pons is one of the most difficult books I have had to review to date.The whole story is written by the perspective of Lele. Although Lele Pons is apparently a big internet personality via her astonishing and record breaking success on the Vine platform, I had never heard of her or of the Vine. To make matters worse, we are told that this volume, although closely linked to Lele's rise on the Vine, is not an auto-biography but rather a fictional one, which means that at the end of it all I could not really understand what I had read or why. Was I getting a glimpse into the world of Lele and getting an accurate idea of who she is as a person or was this all fiction? I still do not have an answer to this fundamental question.
This book presents Lele as a 16/17 year-old sensible catholic girl from Venezuela who was made to move to Miami and attend a much larger/cosmopolitan high school in an attempt to broaden her interpersonal skills.
Lele has been brought up by very open and supportive parents who taught her to be herself and embrace her own uniqueness. Her unique traits did remind me of my own situation growing up; I was bright, yet not academic; I was different from my peers; I had difficulties expressing myself verbally; I had a very heightened sense of fairness and justice, and to top it all off I was clumsy. Lele had to develop other ways to express herself, and in particular she learnt to make fun of herself. At the same time she was lucky in that this new social media platform, the Vine, gave her an outlet to express herself.
I also fully understood and smiled at many references to being of Latin origin - the reference to Gasolina and the soap operas cracked me up, even though I am Italian rather than Venezuelan and Lele and I are nowhere near the same age group. By a long shot - seriously, I could literally and amply be her mum!
**A ella le gusta la gasolina. (Dame mas gasolina!) Como le encanta la gasolina (Dame mas gasolina!)**
The writing style is individual and comes across as honest. Yet we are told this is a fictional piece. I just could not figure our what to make of this tome. I kept asking myself what I was actually getting out of it.
Although some bits were entertaining on a very personal level, on many other occasions Lele came across as a rather spoilt child. But then again .... she is meant to be 17, hence it is hardly surprising.
With regard to the title, Surviving High School, this is in no way intended to be an advice manual on HOW to survive high school at all. This is a fictional biographical account of what Lele faced in her first year at a new high school, new found fame and how she coped with it. It is all about her struggles, insecurities (yep, if you have seen Lele you will know that she is gorgeous, yet she did not seem to know that for quite some time) and her own personal growth as a 17 year old girl.
Truthfully I cannot judge Lele or her fictionalised character, as I ended up often empathising with her.
Still the question remains; did I actually get anything from reading this book? I am not sure I did. I often found myself wondering why I was even carrying on when there are so many other stories I wanted to get to.
Would I recommend this book? Probably only to young teenagers, in particular if they are interested in Lele Pons and her Vine clips.
On a personal note, whilst reading Lele's story, I could not help but wonder (if the events do actually reflect reality at all) if she, like me, might be dyspraxic as many of the traits described were absolutely uncanny.
Dear Lele, I wish you all the best, and as you have heard a million times before fame and beauty are fleeting. Cover your own back - it is easier to do so when you are young.
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Surviving High School is a novel co-authored by vine superstar Lele Pons (and don't worry, I had never heard of her either. I am more of a youtube kind of gal.) and author Melissa De La Cruz. Surviving High School is a standalone young adult contemporary comedy. This book cracked me up. It is certainly not a book to take overly seriously. It is very irreverent, but hilarious! I loved all of the pop culture references,
**You can see this full review and more at Book Briefs: http://bookbriefs.net**Surviving High School is a novel co-authored by vine superstar Lele Pons (and don't worry, I had never heard of her either. I am more of a youtube kind of gal.) and author Melissa De La Cruz. Surviving High School is a standalone young adult contemporary comedy. This book cracked me up. It is certainly not a book to take overly seriously. It is very irreverent, but hilarious! I loved all of the pop culture references, and the main character, Lele is a hoot. She is not the most serious or deep individuals ever to grace the halls of high school, but she cracked me up. I am not really sure if this is based at all on Lele's high school experience, and I don't know what to think if it was...even very loosely. Either way, this is a book to read, laugh and not take too seriously. If you do that, I think you will have a good time.
Surviving High School seems to be a very polarizing book for readers. People have either loved it or intensely disliked it. Honestly, I really enjoyed Surviving High School. I took it for what it is... a pop culture filled, irreverent and sarcastic story about a high school girl. It is kooky and wacky, and I get that may not be for everyone, but I think if you are in the mood to read something that will have you giggling away, this is the book for you. If this is not your cup of tea, then this is certainly not the book for you. But I thought it was a fun ride. Lele is a girl that goes insta-famous on the internet, and we get to watch how that rolls over to her "real-life". I loved this concept because in a world of social media stars, this could be a very real reality for some teens. I have no idea whether it would be this extreme for them or not, but it was fun reading, because it didn't seem so far to stretch for me. Sure it was over the top, but that added to the humor for me.
This book reminded me of Mean Girls, like the summary says, and also It's All Your Fault by Paul Rudnick. It has that same kind of hold nothing back, everyone and everything is fair game contemporary humor. It seemed like every sentence had a pop culture reference of some kind. I love stuff like that because I am kind of a pop culture junkie. (my head is full of all kinds of useless pop culture facts.) It kind of made me want to go watch Lele Pons vine video's to see if they are anything like the book, and to see if the Lele from the book is anything like the real life Lele. I would love to know how much of this overlaps with real Lele's life.
Bottom line: if you are looking for a light hearted read that is not serious at all, check out Surviving High School. Pull up your pop culture wikipedia and get ready to laugh.
This review was originally posted on Book Briefs
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