Ginny and her friends are still in business with their lending library and have a big book sale coming up. The profits of the sale will go to the school library so all the town citizens are donating books. One of these books is a rare and valuable copy of Rhyme? And Reason? which Mrs. Arnold accidentally donates and needs back immediately. But uh oh, the book has disappeared and every Hustler swears they didn't sell it. Did someone steal it? And if so, who?
As all this is happening Ginny is offered the position of emcee for the new radio program "Author Meets Teen-Age Critics". A show where a teenage panel will interview an author about a book. Not only is Ginny the emcee but she's also in charge of selecting the panel, picking the book, and contacting the author. Can she do all this while also searching for the missing book, work at the lending library, keep up school, and basketball practice or did Ginny "bite off more than she can chew"?
Writing that summary without going into a rant of everything wrong with this book was quite hard. This book got me more heated than anything I've ever read before. At one point I was tempted to ripped the book apart, no joke, I was that frustrated with it.
Here are the notes I took while reading:
- In the last book Ginny gives Joe the idea to turn his big, old, empty family house into apartments as there's an affordable housing shortage in Harrisville. Joe has ran with Ginny's idea and the apartments will be ready in a week...so it only took Joe about 2 weeks to convert a whole house into apartments. Joe, who the heck are your contractors?
- Once Ginny tells Mrs. Arnold about the missing book Mrs. Arnold insists it's a mystery and wants Ginny to solve it. Ginny has to refuse because her parents told her one more mystery and she's getting shipped off to boarding school. But for some reason Ginny doesn't tell Mrs. Arnold this, she just says no and Mrs. Arnold has a hissy fit and withdraws her patronage from the lending library.
- Really its Mrs. Arnold's fault the book has gone missing. She shouldn't have "accidentally" donated it. This is the same plot for the first and second books and seriously, could Julie Campbell not think up any other plot?
- Mrs. Arnold claims the book is worth $500 and both the Hustlers and Carson feel they morally owe Mrs. Arnold the money which is beyond ridiculous. Again, it was Mrs. Arnold's fault the book was donated. Also how do they know it's worth $500? Just cause Mrs. Arnold says so? She's very eccentric and could be fibbing to make the situation more exciting, as she's known to do. Also she said that was the price last time she had it appraised but book prices go up as well as down.
- Alicia Golden clearly wrote My Heart is in the City. Campbell's not even trying to make that a good mystery.
- No one wants to be on Ginny's panel for the radio show because they won't be on a show run by a girl, even the other girls. Oh please.
- I don't get why everyone is against Ginny doing the radio show. Ginny can simply study/do homework at the stall. Since they're portable not a lot of people come in so she'd have the time. And Ginny said basketball practice is mostly during gym class. So she has plenty of time to do the show. Are the people who disagree with her being the emcee simply jealous that Ginny was picked and not them?
- Why is Ginny, a 14 year old, responsible for contacting the author and not Mr. Adrian or someone at the radio station? It seems really inappropriate. The excuse Mr. Adrian gives is that he wants the show to be ran by teenagers but in that case at least pay Ginny. She had to spend her allowance on long distant phone calls to the authors agent so she's not only not making money, she's losing it to do Mr. Adrian's job for him.
- Honestly the way Lucy turns on Ginny really makes her seem jealous. The radio show is actual work that Ginny could put on a resume and the experience could give her a leg up in a future career, something that Ginny herself realizes. But Lucy, and everyone else, just turns on her instantly and is so bitter towards her about the show. They act as though she's a two-faced, spoiled, brat for wanting to work outside the lending library where, by the way, she does the most work and everyone else just delivers books and then goes and does whatever they feel like. Ginny is in the stall from opening until closing, does the files, organizes and inventories the books, handles the money and the memberships, and deals with customers. She does more than anyone else, she's like the Cinderella of the lending library; they make her do the hard and unwanted jobs but when she wants one night at the ball she's suddenly selfish and spoiled. They even make her go retrieve a book from Mrs. Arnold when they know Mrs. Arnold is mad at her and told her to "never show her face at her house again".
- The worst part is that Ginny starts to believe all the terrible things people are saying to her and blames herself/is constantly apologizing. Ugh Ginny stop, you didn't do anything wrong.
- The Hustlers even blame Ginny for the theft of Rhyme? And Reason? when it was as much their fault as hers, which is not at all. It was Mrs. Arnold's fault and she needs to take responsibility for it.
- John acts so immature at the meeting, refusing to acknowledge anything Ginny says and pretending like she's not there. Why is everyone taking his side? Of right, jealousy.
- Ginny's parents want her to quit the radio show because she is a little behind in one class and they believe the radio show is interrupting her school work... but the show hasn't even started yet, it's her having to do everything at the lending library with no help from the others, which is making her fall behind in class. Yet they don't want her to quit the lending library.
- This is all an excuse for Ginny's father to tell her she must have John hired as her co-emcee because John supposedly wont fall behind in school like Ginny, a girl, would. My goodness, imagine your own parents trying to take away your opportunities and achievements and give them to your friend who they like more. Is John secretly Mr. Gordon's son or something, jeez. Also the Gordon's maid is getting married and so wont be working for them anymore. Instead of hiring a new maid they just make Ginny take over and they worry the radio show wont leave anytime for Ginny to clean the house. Why the heck can't Mrs. Gordon just do the housework? She doesn't have a job so what is she doing with all that free time? Make a damn bed yourself lady.
- John is immediately nice to Ginny once he gets hired as co-emcee which proves he was jealous all along.
- Johns dad says all bibliophiles are thieves which is quite strange.
- Ginny was gonna have to take on less duties at the Stall once the radio show starts airing so would have less time-consuming responsibilities and could have emceed alone. This was all just a ploy to get John on the show but it's a weak one considering John could have simply been a panel member.
- Everything gets fixed for Ginny simply when her friends help her get a panel and write a letter, Chuck joins the Hustlers, etc. John really didn't have to be an emcee, her friends just needed to be kinder.
- The hints to let you know that Alicia's mystery man is Tim O'Leery are painful. Yes, we get it, moth as in Timothy.
- Ginny gets criticized for waiting so long to get an author for the radio show even though she was only brought on about 2 weeks before airing. Also this should not be her responsibility! Mr. Adrian is terribly unprofessional.
- Chuck claims to have had a portable lending library and been emcee of a radio show at his old town. Sure, Jan.
- It's annoying that the Hustlers weren't picked for the panel from the start cause we all know it's gonna be them. Also the book cover gives it away.
- After the first show Ginny hands over her, and Johns, emcee job to Chuck. First off it's not Ginny's place to give the job away, second she doesn't talk to John before giving his job away, and third it's irresponsible of her to quit after one show.
(It's now months later and I realize I was so heated over this book I never even finished the review.)
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