Customer Reviews

Braless in Wonderland

5 star:		(10)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Did you know that models practice smiling with their tongue behind their teeth to hide the dreaded black space? It's something that Allee Rosen would never have thought of as she stuffed rolls of toilet paper into her backpack for her art project.

Allee's headed to Yale to be an English Literature major. Yale! Or so she thought. She finds out her rocket scientist dad failed to save enough money for the prestigious school. So, for now, she's finishing her senior year of high school, working at Wal-Mart, and trying to decide whether or not to give in to her dad and go the University of Florida to major in something sensible, like science or business. Yuck.

Her life changes the day she takes her sister, Sabrina, to the mall for a modeling agency's talent search. Instead of signing Sabrina, aka "The Fluff," they want Allee! The brainiac. The feminist. The total opposite of a girly-girl. Allee knows this is crazy. She doubts it's even legit. But it's an offer she can't refuse. It could mean earning the extra money to get to Yale.

Following a dream-like trip to Miami to meet the owner of what turns out to be a highly respectable and sought-after agency, Allee moves into an apartment for the models. Allee finds herself struggling to believe that she's actually pretty. Serious by nature, she fears she'll never be able to let loose and have fun with the camera. Will she ever get a booking? How can she compete with the beautiful, intimidating, and fiercely competitive girls she's rooming with? What the heck are chicken cutlets? And what if she makes it big? Will she choose to leave Wonderland behind and go to Yale in the fall?

BRALESS IN WONDERLAND thrusts the reader into the world of modeling. Debbie Reed Fischer zooms in to focus on the often cutthroat competition between models, the necessary obsession with weight and the risks some models will take to lose just a few more pounds, the glamour, the parties, and the clothes. Oh, the clothes! If you are even the tiniest bit interested in a modeling career, I'd suggest you pick up a copy of this book. And for those of you who think you'd never consider being a model? Just remember, neither did Allee.

Reviewed by: Cana Rensberger

Forget everything you learned from America's Next Top Model...Allee Rosen is here to tell you the real scoop. From the moment this quiet bookworn is discovered at her small town mall (it was supposed to be her sister!) to her wild ride through the world of South Beach glamor, you will be totally captivated by the roller coaster ride her sudden success brings and you will root for her to not lose the one thing she needs the most...herself. Debbie Reed Fischer wields language like a light saber, and she clearly knows this world as only an insider could. Almost every page gives you a laugh out loud, a surprise and an insight. This one is a winner!

...in a lot more ways than one.

Braless in Wonderland has an edgy cover and an even edgier title, sending the messages "Glitz!" and "Fashion!" and "Fiction for mean girls!" It's ironic really, because that's so not what's going on here...and yet it echoes the main themes of the book eerily well.

Debbie Reed Fischer paints a engrossing picture of a world--modeling--that I knew nothing about and felt slightly repelled by, like her protagonist Allee. I got sucked right into it along with Allee and along with her learned that appearances can be SO deceiving. Though the details about life as a model were fascinating (I will never again look at a chicken cutlet in quite the same way), it was Allee's growth and journey through that life that made it so wonderful, and Allee's discovery that feminism can have many meanings that is important here.

Read this book. Fun and entertaining? Abso-freaking-lutely. Thoughtful and thought-provoking? Even more so. It deserves all five of those stars.

I have to say that when I started to read this book I figured it would take me a few days even a week to complete. But that was not the case. I am not the target audience as I am much older than the teens it is targeted for but I have to say it brought me back to my own Teen and early 20's. The cast of characters and the backdrop of South Beach were on the mark. Debbie Fischer keeps you constantly wanting to turn the page and see what else is going to happen. My favorite character happened to be the grandma and I can only imagine if she is taken from a real life family member. The book touches on all facets of a young womans life and what decisions she has to make as well as proving who she is to her peers. I actually finished it in an afternoon and look forward to other publications from this author. Here is to taking me back to vacations and party days in South Beach. Every girl dreams of becoming a model and Debbie Fischer allows us to see that we all have a path it just sometimes takes longer than others to find it.

Alle Rosen had dreams of Yale. The high school senior, overachiever, and brainiac couldn't wait to submerge herself in a world of intelligent college scholars. So, when she's forced to drive her sister to a casting call at the local mall, Alle feels she's been dropped down the wrong rabbit hole when she's the one who's "discovered." Realizing that the modeling money could ensure she'd be able to afford Yale, Alle accepts the job and moves to Miami. Before she knows it, Alle is living the good life as the next "It Girl" on South Beach. When her acceptance letter from Yale arrives, she's forced to reevaluate her dreams. Taking advice from the Cheshire Cat, Alle decides which wonderland is truly best for her. This fun-filled book is the debut novel from Debbie Reed Fischer. Her second novel, Swimming with the Sharks, is also out.
--Reviewed By Kerry O'Malley Cerra

BRALESS IN WONDERLAND
DEBBIE REED FISCHER

Rating: 4 Enchantments

Allee Rosen has never pictured herself as model material, that is until she takes her younger sister Sabrina to a mall tryout and has the judges fawning all over her and completely ignoring her sister. What strange world has she stepped into? But suddenly her parents are telling her the modeling agency has been calling, they're totally legit and if she does this, she could have enough money to go to Yale. That's all Allee needs to hear to agree to go.

Which is how Allee finds herself in Miami, sharing an apartment with three other models - Brynn, the typical temperamental model; Summer, her one apparent friend in the bunch, and crazy, fun Claudette. But when her father issues her an ultimatum - get booked or come home - Allee must step out of her comfort zone if she wants to stay.

I really enjoyed this book. Allee's a great character, a tad insecure; after all it's her sister who always gets all the compliments. So imagine her surprise when it's her the modeling scouts are after. But then she goes to Miami and even though it seems that the reps like her on the go-sees, Allee can't book a single job. That is, until her father's ultimatum seems to set a chain of events in motion that lands Allee one of the most coveted modeling gigs available, one that helps boost her potential and gets her to let loose and enjoy life in Miami a little more. But when a surprising case of sabotage is revealed, and Allee gets the chance to extend her modeling career, she faces a tough decision. Go home to Cape Comet or take the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity and see where it takes her.

Populated with a fun vibe, an inside look at the world of Miami modeling agencies, and some great secondary characters, BRALESS IN WONDERLAND is well worth picking up for some by-the-pool summer reading. I look forward to reading more from Ms. Reed Fischer.

Lisa
Enchanting Reviews
March 2008

Not only is Debbie Reed Fischer a fantastic person, but she is also an amazing author. I read this entire book in one night, including under the covers with a booklight since I just could not put it down. I love this book and know everyone else will too.

This book has it all - intrigue, suspense and an awesome surprise ending. Loved it - you will too.

Somewhere in the back of every girl's mind is a thought about becoming a model. And Debbie Reed Fischer has made those girls quite happy with her story of Allee Rosen, a young woman thrown into stardom quite by accident. Braless in Wonderland is a delight from the first page to the last. I had a terrific time immersing myself in South Beach culture and in that crazy world of make-up, photo shoots, and runways, and didn't stop turning pages until the end.

Alle is known as the brain, the smart one of her family. Her sister Sabrina is the pretty one, and Alle refers to her as The Fluff.... all beauty no brains. But Alle's smarts have paid off and she has an acceptance to Yale in the fall, unfortunately she has no way to pay for it.

When she escorts her sister to a modeling agency scouting, she gets discovered instead of Sabrina. Although modeling is the last thing in the world Alle wants to do, she knows that the money from modeling could make her dream of Yale come true. So she heads of to South Beach, in hopes of securing her future at Yale. But modeling is a lot more than Alle expected.

This was an extraordinary novel! The only other modeling books I've read are the Violet Series by Melissa Walker and I wouldn't even compare the two. Not that one is better than the other, because I immensely enjoyed both books, but they are nothing alike. Yes, they are both about girls who are discovered and become models but that is where the similarities stop. Braless in Wonderland is more a "finding out whom you really are story," than a "becoming a model story."

While modeling does have it glamourous moments, it was refreshing to read about the other side of the industry. Fischer's experience in the modeling world was apparent in the novel and it made it seem that much more real. Alle is such a dynamic character, she is relatable, funny, intelligent and at the same time so naive. I couldn't help but root for her on her trip to Wonderland. I absolutely recommend this book!