I remember waiting for The Cinderella Society. I fell in the love with the cover. I love Princess stories. I was So happy when an ARC came my way. I devoured this book and haven't stopped handing it off to teens who love Princess stories, who love Meg Cabot, who love secret societies. It's a fabulous fun read! In college, I decorated the ceilings of my rooms with pictures from magazines. At work, I've decorated the walls with...book covers, movie posters from books, stickers, and magazines photos that make me smile. The Cinderella Society is one of the book covers posted on my wall - but this one's special because right above it, I have a promotional postcard from Kay with my thoughts:
Makeovers, secret societies, romance, and showdowns,
I LOVED this book!
I love her highlighting my quote. Getting this postcard totally made my day!
I love the shoe on top of the pink boxes and the fancy writing!
Q&A: How did you think up such an awesome twist on Cinderella? LOL. I'm so glad you think it's awesome! :-) It actually came from an article I read several years ago on high school sororities. I'd never heard of that before. I started thinking about what I would've wanted it to be like and decided a girl power society dedicated to defeating the mean girls of the world (on a global scale!) would've been seriously cool.
It's one of my favorite reads!
What's up next for Jess (and how many books do you envision in the series)? The series is open-ended. Right now I'm working on the sequel to The Cinderella Society, titled Cindy on a Mission. It follows the further adventures of Jess and the Sisters as the Wickeds launch an offensive that threatens everything the Cindys hold dear. Cindy on a Mission will be on shelves in Spring 2011.
I seriously can't wait for more!
What is it like being a debut author and did you do something special to celebrate? It is completely amazing. I celebrated on release day by having lunch with a friend (cupcakes for dessert, of course!) and enjoying the gorgeous day we had. We also popped into a local bookstore and I got to see the book on the shelves. Really and truly on the shelves! This just blew my mind. The gal was super sweet about having me sign them, so it was fun all around. And then I settled in for a 7-hour Twitter launch party that Team Cindy planned for me! It was completely exhausting in the most wonderful way possible.
Cupcakes! Of course :) and the Twitter party was great fun
Do you have a favorite inspirational quote? "Be the change you wish to see in the world." by Mahatma Gandhi. It inspires me every day and is the reason I founded Living Your FiveTM in 2009.
Awesome quote - I love it!
What's the last book you read that you've been recommending to everyone? There are so many! I love Christina Diaz Gonzalez's The Red Umbrella (on shelves next month) and I'm rereading Graceling by Kristin Cashore right now. I almost never read books twice, so that's a big deal for me. :-) I'm also counting the days (like everyone else is) until Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins hits shelves. I can't WAIT for MockingJay and Red Umbrella is going in my TBR pile once it hits. I LOVED Graceling.
I had the extreme good fortune to read this book early.
Here's my Review: Jess hates her school and desperately needs to find friends to keep her off of the mean girls' radar. On the final day of the school year (after two humiliating events), she finds an envelope in her bag inviting her to a secret society. At first, she thinks it's just another prank, but then she realizes that it's for real. Jess has no idea why they want her, but she's willing to find out why.
The Cindys recruit girls with special powers of kindness, leadership, and generosity, and the group includes some of the most popular girls in school. There's a long-standing tradition of The Cindys nationwide - battling the Wickeds, their evil counterpart. This year, the Wickeds have doubled in size, proving that something's afoot. It's a lot of information for Jess to take in, but she's super-excited about the makeover given to all of The Cindys upon their initiation. Soon, she's picking out her own signature style and having her hair and makeup professionally done. So far, everything about the group has been great, but there's a lot of work ahead of her.
In the midst of the battle for good and evil, Jess snagged the boy she's been crushing on since she moved to town. The Cindys have given Jess a mission to uncover information, but once Jess has it, she can't let go. Will she go against The Cindys and their ways to battle her nemesis?
THE CINDERELLA SOCIETY is the first book in a new series. I LOVED this book for several reasons, including the title (love stories about Princesses), the cover (which is awesome), and the story just rocks. There are makeovers, secret societies, romance, and snarky showdowns
And the book trailer I created:
Here's a little bit of info about Kay: Kay Cassidy is the author of teen fiction she wishes was based on her real life. She is the founder of the national Great Scavenger Hunt ContestTM reading program for kids and teens and the host of the inspirational Living Your FiveTM web project. In her free time, she enjoys yoga, movies, music, and reading. Lots and lots of reading. She hopes her debut YA novel, THE CINDERELLA SOCIETY (April 13, 2010 - Egmont), will help girls embrace their inner Cindy.
OFFICIAL BOOK BLURB: What a girl to do when the glass slipper fits, but she doesn't want to wear it anymore? Sixteen year old Jess Parker has always been an outsider. So when she receives an invitation to join The Cinderella Society, a secret society of the most popular girls in school, it's like something out of a fairy tale. Swept up by the Cindys' magical world of makeovers, and catching the eye of her Prince Charming, Jess feels like she's finally found her chance to fit in. Then the Wickeds--led by Jess's arch-enemy--begin targeting innocent girls in their war against the Cindys, and Jess discovers there's more to being a Cindy than reinventing yourself on the outside. She has unknowingly become part of a centuries-old battle of good vs. evil, and now the Cindys in charge need Jess for a mission that could change everything. Overwhelmed, Jess wonders if The Cinderella Society made a mistake in choosing her. Is it a coincidence her new boyfriend doesn't want to be seen with her in public? And is this glamorous, secret life even what she wants, or will she risk her own happy ending to live up to the expectations of her new sisters?
Curious? Here's a sneak peek!
BOOK TEASER: I opened the card, my hands trembling in dread and the faint remnants of what I used to call hope, as a tiny silver high-heel pin bounced into my hand. I juggled the pin for a second, barely managing to keep it from falling, and flipped open the note with my other hand. The words inside were not a message but an invitation that sent shivers down my spine:
Your presence is requested at The Grind. Tonight, 7 p.m. Wear the pin. Discretion MANDATORY.
Awesome right?
Thanks for chatting with us Kay. I ran out the minute I could to purchase a copy (but there's always the library too). It's a fabulous read, DON’T missit!!
Just in time for the Percy Jackson movie - a mythology display.
The focal point of the display - Percy Jackson and Oh My Gods
I bought Percy Jackson bookmarks that say The Greatest Heroes are Readers and the back, there's a booklist of our fictional mythology books:
Avalon High
Book of Three
Nobody’s Princess
Oh My Gods
Percy Jackson series
Radiant Darkness
Runemarks
Sea Trolls
Secrets of Nicholas Flamel
Sirena
Sisters of Isis series
Sword of the Rightful King
Tattoo
Water Mirror
Why I Ley My Hair Grow Out
The other bookmarks are from Tera Lynn Childs for her second book, Goddess Boot Camp they have: Are you Goddess enough? as a tagline. (charming!) plus, Tera sent me these awesome buttons. I confess that I swiped some for myself and the teens are gobbling up the rest of them.
plus, I was really lucky as Oh My Gods was just returned that day for the picture. It's hard to keep this series on the shelf :)
I should have take this picture a few weeks ago as there as a large display before the mythology one. By the time I thought of it, most of the books were all checked out.
a wall display of the Great Scavenger Hunt
a blurry picture of my wall valentine display - the hearts say funny library things like Books Rock and Love your Library.
Kay Cassidy is cohosting this awesome challenge, which is right up my alley. I ADORE chick lit, especially Teen Chick Lit!
So here's my quick list, although I'm sure I'll be reading scores more.
1. Ex-Games (finally got this from the library, taking it home tonight) 2. Maggie Bean in Love (This one just came out, taking it home tonight) 3. Heist Society (Can't WAIT for this one) 4. Princess for Hire (Looks cute) 5. Magic Under Glass (LOVE the cover) 6. Hex Hall (Looks wickedly awesome) 7. Coffeehouse Angel (Been waiting for this one to come back to the library) 8. Match Made in High School (Looks cute) 9. Spring Fling (Love her other books) 10. Endless Summer (Adored Boys Next Door - interested in the sequel)
Note: This book doesn't come out til next April, but it's so fun, I wanted to talk about it.
Jess hates her school and desperately needs to find friends to keep her off of the mean girls' radar. On the final day of the school year (after two humiliating events), she finds an envelope in her bag inviting her to a secret society. At first, she thinks it's just another prank, but then she realizes that it's for real. Jess has no idea why they want her, but she's willing to find out why. The Cindys, recruits girls with special powers of kindness, leadership, and generosity and includes some of the most popular girls in school. There's a long standing tradition of the Cindys nationwide - battling the Wickeds, the evil counterpart. This year, the Wickeds has doubled in size, proving that something's afoot. It's a lot of information for Jess to take in and she's super excited about the makeover given to all the Cindys upon their initiation. Soon, she's picking out her own signature style and having her hair and makeup professionally done. So far, everything about the group has been great, but there's a lot of work ahead of her. In the midst of the battle for good and evil, Jess snagged the boy she's been crushing on since she moved to town. The Cindy's have given Jess a mission to uncover information but once Jess has the information, she can't let go. Will she go against the Cindys' way to battle her nemesis?
This is the first book in a new series - with the next book out in 2011. I LOVED this book for several reasons including the title (love stories about Princesses), the cover is awesome, plus the story rocks. There's makeovers, secret societies, romance, and snarky showdowns. Add this to your list of books to look forward to!
