Art Geeks and Prom Queens: A Novel [Paperback]

Alyson Noël (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: August 11, 2005

Dorks, Dweebs, Debutantes, and Jocks—Where would you fit in?

Being the new girl is tough—just ask sixteen-year-old Rio Jones. A New York transplant, Rio has no clue how she's going to fit in at her fancy new private school in Southern California. Plus, being late, overdressed, and named after a Duran Duran song doesn't make the first day any easier for her.

Then Rio meets Kristi. Beautiful, rich, and a cheerleader, Kristi is the queen bee of Newport Beach. And Kristi isn't friends with just anyone, so Rio is thrilled when she's invited to be part of the most exclusive, popular clique. Of course, like any club, Kristi and her friends have rules: Always smile (even if you don't mean it), always dress cute (and never repeat outfits), and always flirt (but only with jocks, preps, and rich college guys).

At first Rio is having a great time, but as she becomes more immersed in this jet-set crowd, she figures out there is one last rule that her new friends forgot to mention: Don't cross Kristi . . .

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Grade 9 Up–Rio Jones, 16, doesn't have a clue how she is going to fit into her new Southern California private school. Just as she is about to drown in despair, she is rescued by a couple of geeks in AP Art who take her in hand. Then Kristi, the alpha female at the Newport Beach school, takes an interest in her, and Rio thinks her life is perfect–until she surpasses Kristi and learns the true meaning of revenge and the importance of being true to oneself. This plot line is summarily predictable, but that doesn't make the ride any less enjoyable. Rio is well drawn with believable inner dialogue, and the stereotyped popular crowd is so much fun to hate. Some mild drug use, sexual situations, and realistic profanity are included.–Morgan Johnson-Doyle, Sierra High School, Colorado Springs, CO
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From Booklist

Gr. 9-12. "If my house was a high school then my mom would be the prom queen, my dad would be the brainiac, and I would be the big weirdo art geek." Sixteen-year-old Rio has just moved from New York to ritzy Southern California. She makes a few friends in her art class, including dazzling Jas, but dumps them after cheerleader Kristi embraces her. Her father, away on business, and her mother, a former model delighted with Rio's new designer makeover, are oblivious when Rio's position in the sex-and-drugs popular scene goes wrong. Then Rio summons help, exacts some sweet revenge, and returns to the friends (and family) she trusts. Fans of Gossip Girls and other series about the rich and gorgeous will recognize all the familiar elements here: designer labels, gleaming houses, and a model-perfect, central character drawn straight from the fashion fantasies of Teen Vogue. However, Noel, the author of Faking 19 (2005), writes with a bit more humor and authenticity than some of her chick-lit cotemporaries. Expect high demand and possible sequels. Gillian Engberg
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 14 and up
  
• Paperback: 240 pages
• Publisher: St. Martin's Griffin; First Edition edition (August 11, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0312336365
• ISBN-13: 978-0312336363
• Product Dimensions: 8 x 5.6 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (18 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #758,707 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Alyson Noël is the #1 New York Times best selling, award-winning, author of FAKING 19, ART GEEKS AND PROM QUEENS, LAGUNA COVE, FLY ME TO THE MOON, KISS & BLOG, SAVING ZOË, CRUEL SUMMER, FOREVER SUMMER (a LAGUNA COVE/CRUEL SUMMER 2-in1), the IMMORTALS series including: EVERMORE, BLUE MOON, SHADOWLAND, DARK FLAME, NIGHT STAR, & EVERLASTING, the IMMORTALS spin-off, RILEY BLOOM series including RADIANCE, SHIMMER, DREAMLAND & WHISPER (04.24.12), with short stories apearing in the anthologies: FIRST KISS (THEN TELL), KISSES FROM HELL, & DEAR BULLY. She is currently working on a new series for teens, SOUL SEEKERS, set to debut with book 1, FATED in May 2012, to be followed by ECHO, MYSTIC, & HORIZON in 2012/13.

With over 8 New York Times bestsellers in 2 years, and over 6 million copies in print, her books have been translated into 37 languages, sold in over 50 countries, and have made the New York Times, USA Today, Publishers Weekly, Wall Street Journal, LA Times, NCIBA, and Walmart bestsellers lists, and have won numerous awards such as: the National Reader's Choice Award, NYLA Book of Winter Award, NYPL Stuff for the Teenage, TeenReads Best Books of 2007, Reviewer's Choice 2007 Top Ten, appeared on the CBS Early Show's "Give the Gift of Reading" segment, and selected for Seventeen Magazine's "Hot List" and Beach Book Club Pick.

The dramatic rights for all 6 books in THE IMMORTALS series and all 4 books in the RILEY BLOOM series, were optioned by Summit Entertainment--and her adult novel, FLY ME TO THE MOON, was optioned by Ridley Scott's, Scott Free Productions, with Sharon Maguire (Bridget Jones' Diary) set to write and direct.

Born and raised in Orange County, California, she's lived in both Mykonos and Manhattan and is now settled in Southern California where she's working on her next book.

Photo by Nancy Villere.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars "Heathers" for the new generation, September 29, 2006

By 

Bearette24 (New York, NY) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Art Geeks and Prom Queens: A Novel (Paperback)

This was an enjoyable read. It tells the story of Rio, who's named after a Duran Duran song. She lives with her former model mother and lawyer father in Laguna Beach, but misses New York and her friends there (they recently moved).

Rio makes a couple of friends from her art class in Laguna Beach, but then Kristi, cheerleader and queen bee, takes her under her wing. Suddenly, Rio has to follow rules...who to associate with, which boys to like, how to dress...or otherwise make Kristi mad. Everyone tiptoes around Kristi. But then, a fateful game of spin-the-bottle seals Rio's destiny. Kristi's not talking to her anymore, and she's turned the whole school against her.

This was an insightful look at high school cliques, the fear of those in power, and also just a fun bubbly read that made me remember being a teenager. The writing was pitch-perfect and really sounded like a young adult.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Realistic narrator, but hard to like her, October 18, 2010

By 

small review - See all my reviews

This review is from: Art Geeks and Prom Queens: A Novel (Paperback)

New girl Rio expects to be a social outcast in her new school, so she is surprised when Kristi, the beautiful queen-bee mean girl, invites Rio into her clique. Rio quickly sheds the artsy friends she made her first day and embraces Kristi's offer. But being friends with Kristi comes with strings: Rio must make sure she's dressed to meet Kristi's approval, she is only allowed to date boys Kristi approves of, she must embrace Kristi's drug and alcohol habits, and above all else, Rio cannot outshine Kristi. Rio is happy enough to comply, but when Rio's popularity begins to eclipse Kristi's, Kristi sets out to destroy Rio's social standing.

Filled with mean girl cattiness and teenage insecurities, Art Geeks and Prom Queens is a realistic portrayal of how a teenager in Rio's position would probably think, act, and feel. As a result, I can see why it has been included in recommended reading lists for so many schools. Rio's voice is believable and never sounded forced or like an adult trying too hard to sound like a teenager. Instead, I can completely believe that Rio is a real girl candidly describing a year in her life. In this regard, Art Geeks and Prom Queens will probably be a hit among its target audience (of which, I should point out, I do not fall into).

While Rio might ring true, she isn't entirely likable. For most of the book she passively goes along with all of Kristi's demands, trading morality for popularity. As a teenager, Rio's actions are pretty realistic. I mean, let's face it, how many teenagers are moral crusaders in the face of popularity? Still, while it's completely believable that Rio would, for example, date a popular guy and let him kiss her (and more) when she doesn't even really like him all that much, it isn't very easy to like her when she behaves so falsely. The rest of the characters are generic stereotypes without much depth or likability. The plot is equally shallow and trite with no surprises.

Rio does stand up for herself in the end, but her turn around rings a little hollow. She acknowledges some of her behavior and the regrets she has about it, but other behaviors (like drug use) are never repented and there is no indication that Rio will stop. Teens may find Rio easy to relate to, but without adult guidance on discussions about the book, I wonder if the book might be sending the wrong messages about certain behaviors. There are plenty of other books and movies to choose from in the "mean girl" and "lifestyles of the rich and fabulous" genres, most of which I've found are more enjoyable reads.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Art Geeks and prom queens the best book, August 24, 2006

By 

K. Scheer (Warrenville, IL USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Art Geeks and Prom Queens: A Novel (Paperback)

All i have to say is this book is good. I loved it so much and so will every other teenage girl in the world i meen seriously!!!