The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants

So doing this for school has officially ended but I don’t think I’m going to let go of this blog or reading YA. With school out I wanted to decompress with some more reading. I chose this one as I had seen the movie last year but never read the book.

 Plot summary:
Four girls born in the same month whose Mom’s were friends are spending their first summer apart. As they prepare to depart on their first individual adventures they find a pair of pants which magically fit them all. Unlike the film this is not done at the store but in Carmen’s room. You follow each of the girls through new and exciting/horrifying/embarasing situations. 

Evaluation:
I sort of enjoyed this movie just because of the actresses but as always the book is so much better. The plots are explored more deeply and the characters are more real. I felt that Carmen and Tibby’s stories were well portrayed in the film but not the other ones. I liked this book but didn’t love it. It was a fun summer read and at 15 on the beach I’m sure it would have been fabulous. I guess I’m getting old as I wanted to know more about the Mom’s as well as the daughters.

Score:    Quality – 3/5     Popularity  – 4/5

Bride & Prejudice

As the musical is the genre of the moment (see High School Musical) and I have a love of the Brit and Bollywood I chose this film to review. Bride and Prejudice is a re-telling of Pride and Prejudice but it is fairly loose. There is a guy called Mr. Darcy and many miscommunications occur but you do not need to be familiar with the book to get the film.

Lalita is the main character, the head-strong second eldest of four daughters. Lalita’s mother wants nothing more to marry her daughters off to successful Indian boys who preferably live in America. During many discussions about marriage and love there are the necessary song and dance routines. Lalita meets Mr. Darcy and American friend of a wedding guest, he and Lalita are at odds almost instantly. Darcy sees Lalita’s family as gold diggers and she sees him as an arrogant Westerner. Cultural barrier and stereotypes replace the class discussions of the original.

I enjoyed this film for itself and not a “re-make” of Austen’s work. The song and dance numbers were fantastic, including the hilarious “no life without wife”. I’m sure that this movie would appeal to a certain group of teens but probably not all of them. You could also sell this film to some LOST fans as it stars Naveen Andrews who plays Sayid. I would definitely consider including this in a collection, especially in areas where it wouldn’t be held in the video store.

Audience: 13+ (girls primarily) Rated PG-13
Ranking: Quality 4/5 Popularity 3.5/5