Diva - Alex Flinn

Synopsis:

Caitlin wants to be a diva. Make that a Diva with a capital D. Sure, you're thinking. A diva. Every girl wants to be one. Caitlin, however, isn't interested in being your normal, everday Paris Hilton. She wants to be the next Christine from Phantom of the Opera. Yep, Caitlin loves opera.

Unusual? Sure. But Caitlin isn't happy waiting in the wings. She wants to soar, to embrace her music, to truly live. And now that she's been accepted into the prestigious Miami High School of the Arts, success is within her reach. Or so she hopes. Unfortunately, she doesn't seem to fit in at Miami H.S.A.. She just isn't "weird" enough. She doesn't dance in the subways, for heaven's sake.

Then she meets Sean. Together, they make amazing music. And the sparks flying between them, well, to Caitlin, are pretty amazing too. Sean has a few secrets though... how will they affect the two of them?


Thoughts

I was pleasantly surprised by this book. The synopsis sets it up to be another catty teen novel, but it had a surprising amount of substance. The character is first introduced in one of Flinn's earlier novels, but this book stands alone. The character is very real, and the issues and fears she deals with on a daily basis mirror those of every teenager. While it addresses many issues modern teens face, it thankfully turns down the opportunity to become overly dramatic.

The musical aspect of this was just another plus side for me :-). From what I have heard from my many friends at arts schools, the depiction seems accurate, although I would like to point out that Phantom of the Opera is a musical and not an opera. In any case the music is only a small detail in the big picture of Diva. My only big complaint is the occasional use of text/im speech, while used for a purpose, still annoys me personally.

The novel is about chasing your dreams at any costs, and understanding what those consequences are. Its about finding yourself and keeping true to that.

On a side note - I found out much later that this is a character from Flinn's first novel, Breathing Underwater. 

Overall

A pretty good read from the young adult section.


Recommended for:

Young adult and chick lit readers.

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