Tuesday, November 26, 2013

Book Review - Carly Rae Jepsen


Carly Rae Jepsen: Call Her Amazing

By: Nadia Higgins
Publisher: Lerner Publishing Group
Publication Date: August 2013
ISBN: 978-1467715478
Reviewed by: Deb Fowler
Review Date: November 27, 2013

No doubt about it, Carly Rae could sing and early on her father “realized she sang perfectly on key.” For a three-year-old, that was a totally awesome thing, but she was also bitten by the performance bug. Four short years later she was all hyped up and ready to enter a talent contest when disaster struck. Carly was going to wear a “frilly pink dress,” but when she went to yank it off the hanger ... watch out! The show must go on and when she performed she had to sport an eye patch because the “hanger popped off and scratched her eyeball.” It was the beginning of a long love affair with performing.

By the time Carly hit high school, she was an avid performer and “everyone knew where to find Carly.” Naturally, she was rehearsing for one thing or another because that performance bug just didn’t see to wear off. When she went off to college, it wasn’t to train to be a teacher like her parents and stepparents, but rather to the Canadian College of Performing Arts. Carly had moved to Victoria, British Columbia to train to be a Broadway star. She learned to dance up a storm (and not very well) and then got a guitar, a guitar that proved to be a life-changing event.

Yes, Carly wouldn’t have minded being famous, but she simply “wanted to write and perform her own music ... and make the rent.” That just wasn’t good enough for her old drama teacher. Carly was pushed into auditioning for “Canadian Idol,” but she wasn’t going to play by the rules. No, she was going to perform her own music, not something another artist had made big. It was the first of many stages and a breakthrough time for her. Carly got “a deal with a Canadian label” and started working on her first album.” But then someone who was very famous heard her sing and wanted her to open for his act. Just who was this guy and why was she so nervous when she began to sing in front of his audience?

This is a fascinating bio of Carly Rae Jepson, a singer-songwriting superstar. The layout of the book is fun and vibrant with loads of full-color photographs and sidebars that add a lot of pizzaz to the book. For example, one says that “Carly says she is crazy about shoes. Since she’s only five feet two, she wears heels most often. She even carries a separate suitcase just for shoes when she travels.” The book will be a definite draw to young fans with extra tidbits about Carly’s life that range from information about her family to her advice to teens and ‘tweens on boys, seeking career paths, and how she’s “keepin’ it real.” In the back of the book is an index, source notes, and additional book and website resources to explore.

Quill says: Young teen and 'tween Carley Rae Jepsen fans are definitely going to be wowed by this pop superstar bio!





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