Girl Online

By Author / Illustrator

Zoe (Zoella) Sugg

Genre

Adventure

Age range(s)

11+

Publisher

Penguin Random House Children's UK

ISBN

9780141357270

Format

Hardback

Published

25-11-2014

Synopsis

The incredible debut novel from YouTube phenomenon Zoe Sugg, aka Zoella.I have this dream that, secretly, all teenage girls feel exactly like me. And maybe one day, when we realize that we all feel the same, we can all stop pretending we're something we're not... But until that day, I'm going to keep it real on this blog and keep it unreal in real life.Penny has a secret. Under the alias Girl Online, Penny blogs her hidden feelings about friendship, boys, high school drama, her crazy family, and the panic attacks that have begun to take over her life. When things go from bad to worse, her family whisks her away to New York, where she meets Noah, a gorgeous, guitar-strumming American. Suddenly Penny is falling in love - and capturing every moment of it on her blog.But Noah has a secret, too, one that threatens to ruin Penny's cover - and her closest friendship - forever.

Reviews

Girl Online is a debut novel from Vlogger Zoe Sugg, aka Zoella. Blogging is integral to the story and parts of the book are in Blog form. Penny, the main character, finds she can only be herself through her Blog, Girl Online. The support she receives from her followers help her to deal with her real life catastrophes, which are often cringe worthily funny, but is there a darker side to the Internet? Are all her followers friends and should she believe everything she reads?

The themes of bullying, friendship and self-esteem are dealt with in an identifiable and often subtle way. Outgrowing friendship and being able to overcome fears are key to the story and show how brave someone can be if they challenge themselves. The use of the Blog form, as well as using lists to overcome problems would be ideal class activities. One list especially stood out, of naming 3 happy things when you are feeling at your lowest.

Other themes covered are: homophobia, romance, self-worth, Internet safety; these are often dealt with in a humorous way (with an underlying serious message) and would appeal to both sexes. This would be for the more confident reader, but the Blogging format would appeal to the reluctant reader. Some of the funnier moments would be ideal as a class read.

Other books that would appeal to those who like this title are: Geek Girl by Holly Smale, My Best Friend and Other Enemies by Catherine Wilkins, Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell and We Were Liars by E.Lockhart.