All American Girl [Paperback]

Meg Cabot (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: July 5, 2002

A brand-new, funny, funky teen novel, with a great new heroine, from rising star Meg Cabot, author of the bestselling Princess Diaries. Sam Madison never knew life could change overnight. But that's exactly what happens when she saves the life of the President of the United States as she's bunking off art class one night. Now an instant (if highly reluctant and very unlikely) celebrity, not to mention teen ambassador to the United Nations, Sam finds herself not only hanging out at the White House - but trying to stop herself falling for David, the President's son...

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Cabot (The Princess Diaries) presents another teen-pleasing novel and another likable heroine in this story set in Washington, D.C. Feisty, red-haired Samantha, a self-described "urban rebel" who has dyed all of her clothes black, is a 15-year-old middle child, uncomfortably wedged between her popular, cheerleader older sister, Lucy, and her brainy 11-year-old sister, Rebecca. And she has a major crush on Jack, Lucy's nonconformistartist boyfriend, whom she feels is far better suited to her than to her rather vacuous sister. The entertainingly opinionated narrator's wry top-10 lists add considerably to the tale's charm and speedy pacing, among them, the "top ten reasons why I can't stand my sister Lucy" and the "top ten signs that Jack loves me and not my sister Lucy and just hasn't realized it yet." Sam's life suddenly changes dramatically when, while standing on the sidewalk one afternoon, she foils an attempt to assassinate the President. She becomes a national hero overnight, is named teen ambassador to the United Nations and eventually lands the president's son as her beau. Despite these rather unlikely plot twists (in a comic coincidence, the president's son also happens to be a fellow student in her art class whom she finds attractive), Sam's spunky and intermittently affecting narrative, as well as the true-to-life voices of the supporting cast of characters, make this a convincing and diverting tale. As Sam learns important truths about herself, Cabot interjects a worthy message into her comedic caper. Ages 12-up.
Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From School Library Journal

Grade 7 Up-Artistic and concerned about social issues, 15-year-old Samantha Madison becomes everybody's All-American Girl (HarperCollins, 2002) when she thwarts an attempt on the life of the president. This entry in Meg Cabot's Princess Diaries series focuses on Sam's hopeless crush on her sister's boyfriend, and her growing friendship with the president's son. There's lots of humor as she sorts out her relationships with her popular older sister and brilliant younger sister. There's also changing expectations from classmates who now view Sam as a celebrity. Fortunately, Sam's determination combined with some good advice from a new art teacher lead to a predicable happy ending. Narrator Ariadne Meyers makes the story funny and hip with great comic timing and "totally" teen intonation. Though the plot is pretty standard, the dialogue has lots of laughs. Libraries where the Princess Diaries have been flying off the shelves will find this a popular addition to their audio collection.
Barbara Wysocki, Cora J. Belden Library, Rocky Hill, CT
Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Audio Cassette edition.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 240 pages
• Publisher: Pan Childrens Paperbacks (July 5, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 033040069X
• ISBN-13: 978-0330400695
• Product Dimensions: 8.4 x 5.3 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 11.2 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (311 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #4,518,104 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

I write! Books for you, your sister, your best friend, your mother . . . . even for men with good taste!

Most of my time is spent over at my website, http://megcabot.com, so be sure to stop by!

UK, New Zealand, and Australia fans, visit http://www.megcabot.co.uk.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

59 of 62 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent, August 20, 2002

By 

Erika Sorocco (Southern California, USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: All-American Girl (Hardcover)

Samantha Madison is what you would call an outcast. She's somewhat of a goth/artist. Her best friend, Catherine, wears clothes from like the 1800's, she's in love with her older sister Lucy's boyfriend, and her younger sister is a certified genius.

When Lucy tells their parents that Samantha is charging people to have their picture drawn with their favorite celebrity her parents enroll her in art class, where she meets David, and is humiliated on her first day, which causes her to ditch her next art lesson, and end up being in the right place at the right time to save the president's life. Which immediatley throws Samantha into a whirlwind of popularity and press conferences. Not to mention that the president's son may be falling in love with her. How could someone's life go from so normal to so crazy?

Meg Cabot has another hit with "All American Girl." Obviously she can write on any topic, and this one was original and refreshing compared to the other teen/young adult books out right now. This is a must read for all fans of "The Princess Diaries." A lot of teenage girls will be able to relate completely to Samantha.

15 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars From good to bad, great to worse, then horrible to wonderful, November 9, 2002

A Kid's Review

This review is from: All-American Girl (Hardcover)

All-American Girl is absolutely a Must-Read! However, in this book 5'2, sophomore, teenage, and artistic girl Samantha Madsion goes through MANY changes! Like when she ditches her second art class at the Susan Boone Gallery (because of drawing in her German notebook and her mom putting her on probation to take a class of art), she actually sees the president of the United States!
The president was walking in this Cookie store with his "security guard-men", so this Billy Joel fan guy near Sam takes this gun out of his coat and then...KABLAM!!! Technically, the "Kablam!" wasn't what happened at all. Instead, Sam saves the president by making the Billy Joel fan assasssinator shoot his gun in a different direction!
Since the guy was heavy, he landed on top of Sam and she injuries her wrist. So these people come and take her to the hospital. And then Miss Samantha's life changes forever! By becoming a hero, totally popular and famous, becomes US Teen Ambassador, gets invited by her enemy's party, and even the president's son David falls in love with her!
There are some big surprises and laughs and dramatic moments in this American book too! Sam's life goes good to bad then so on.... But, I had also liked when Meg Cabot dedicated this novel to the heroes of the September 11th attack!
I was impressed, all right! So All-American Girl is one of the best Young Adult Books to get at the library or at the bookstore. It might have been really different than Cabot's Princess Diaries series, but this book was better, to be honest. I mean, she put some good things in it. Like things about art. The "listening and hearing" and the "seeing and imagining" parts was pretty creative, in fact. If you like books about love, semi-drama, laughs, surprises, and especially about America, then you'll this book.

17 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Formula 1 Again, October 20, 2002

A Kid's Review

This review is from: All-American Girl (Hardcover)

All-American Girl was a fairly fun read. It had humor, romance, and the general angst of being a fifteen year old girl. It read quickly and provided me with some cheap, easy entertainment. The best thing about this book was all the background characters and many subplots- like when Sam has to choose the winning painting for a national contest, and when she meets Susan Boone at the art studio.
The problem is that it's so much like the books from The Princess Diaries series: something drastic changes the life of and ordinary, flat-chested girl, who has to juggle her new fame as well as the normal issues of being a teen. The main character, Sam Madison, thinks she loves one guy, then in the end discovers that someone else is meant for her. Surprise, surprise.
And the voice of the story screamed Mia Thermopolis. Both girls wallow in their own self-pity and use a confusing mixture of sophisticated and dreadful language. Meg Cabot made some clever changes when she created Sam, such as making her an artist and a middle child with somewhat normal parents-but still, Sam and Mia were a lot alike.
I'd say you should pick up this book at the library or borrow it from a friend first, and then if you see yourself re-reading it, by all means go buy it. I've read it twice, the second time for the quirky little details, like all of Sam's Top Ten lists, and my conclusion is: this book is enjoyable but nothing new.