Author: Holly Kowitt
Pub. Date: May 2, 2017
Publisher: Feiwel & Friends
Pages: 224
Formats: Hardcover, eBook
When you're a sixth-grade nobody, the last person you wan to accidentally zonk with a volleyball is Sloan "Selfie" St. Clair--the eighth-grade glamour queen of the school. But that's what happens to Becca Birnbaum, and it only gets worse when she tries to do Selfie a favor. She grabs the wrong shopping bag from the principal's office -- one containing a very personal item. and even that might not be so bad, if only Selfie didn't immediately lose it.
If they don't get it back ASAP, they're toast. They try not to panic--until they hear that the Biggest Prank Ever is about to happen. Can the school's oddest couple stop the disaster of a lifetime?
~AUTHOR INTERVIEW with Holly Kowitt~
1) What gave you the inspiration for the storyline?
My inspiration was the British fiction series, Jeeves and Wooster, about an aristocratic party boy and his very smart butler. I transferred the relationship to middle school, where a rich, super-popular eighth grader accidentally pairs up with a bookish sixth grade nobody. As the “brains” of the operation, the sixth grader always has to get the Queen Bee out of trouble. When the principal’s undergarment goes missing, it’s up to the younger girl to prevent a once-in-a-lifetime disaster.
2) Are there any hidden themes in the book that you hope readers will discover?
In the book, friendship springs up between two very different people -- a partnership that makes no sense to anyone, and defies the school’s social hierarchy. The possibilities of such a friendship are interesting, and very, very funny.
The importance of kindness is another theme. The Queen Bee turns out to be — against type — extremely nice. Each girl, in her own way, challenges the other to be a better person.
3) Are any of the characters based on real people you know?
Becca, the bookish sixth-grader fascinated by the older girl, is based on my younger self. I was a late bloomer who’d have loved a peek into the glamorous eighth grade world.
4) Who has influenced you most as a writer?
In children’s books, I was most influenced by Louise Fitzhugh, who wrote Harriet the Spy. The characters were quirky, real, and flawed. Like Harriet, I wanted to be a writer. It was a story — and world — I could really climb inside and enter, because the setting and characters were so alive to me. And it gave me a crush on New York City.
5) If you could have any three literary characters over to your place for game night, who would you invite, what would you play, what would you serve, and why?
I’d invite Rob Fleming from Nick Hornby’s High Fidelity, Neil Klugman from Goodbye, Columbus, and Joyce Johnson from her Beat-era memoir, Minor Characters. We’d play “Celebrity”, my favorite party game, and I’d serve lemonade and pizza. Each character is a great observer, and I think we’d have a lot of fun together.
About Holly:
Holly Kowitt has written more than fifty books for younger readers, including the Loser List series. She lives in New York City, where she enjoys cycling, flea markets, and West Coast swing dancing.
Giveaway Details:
3 winners will receive a finished copy of
THE PRINCIPAL'S UNDERWEAR IS MISSING, US Only.
THE PRINCIPAL'S UNDERWEAR IS MISSING, US Only.
Tour Schedule:
Week One:
4/27/2017- BookHounds YA- Review
Week Two:
5/1/2017- Booklove- Review
5/5/2017- Rockin' Book Reviews- Review
This book looks like fun!
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