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Wednesday, November 5, 2014

Who's Behind the Roses?

Mia and her best friend are in charge of selling chocolate roses for the sale at school. The grade that sells the most chocolate roses gets to win a special “lock in” as a reward. When Mia’s older sister was in middle school she won, and Mia wants to win too. Mia knows that only a handful of kids in her grade will actually receive roses, as the popular kids usually get them all. It doesn’t seem fair! Mia thinks it would be a nice idea if more people had their faces light up when the roses get delivered, so she takes things into her own hands. In secret, she creates messages for 25 roses (which she buys) and signs them from “an admirer”. What she expects is smiles and happiness, which she definitely sees when people unexpectedly get a rose. Since the roses she sent aren’t signed, everyone is trying to figure out the mystery, making guesses at who likes them. Mia hadn’t anticipated all the boy girl drama the roses would cause, especially for her and her best friends. Meanwhile someone's leaving roses for Mia, and the messages are making her worried. Who is leaving roses for Mia? Will the drama between the boys and the girls end? Will everyone find out what Mia did? Will Mia and her friends win the lock in? One thing is for sure, matchmaking isn’t as easy as it looks!
25 Roses by Stephanie Faris is the first book I've read by this author. I think this is a book that will appeal to girls in grades four and up. Girls who are starting to have crushes on boys will be able to understand the drama going on at Mia’s school. I like that Mia is kind and spends a lot of the book trying to make others smile. I love the idea of brightening up other people’s days with a chocolate rose, and the fact that Mia is nice enough to want more kids to receive roses. I know from experience that sometimes people misunderstand our reasons for doing things, so I worried for Mia at different points in the book. The middle school scene seemed very realistic to me, and I think kids will be able to connect with Mia and relate to the situation at her school. 

Has anyone else read 25 Roses? Or have you read another book by Stephanie Faris? We’d love to hear your thoughts.

Happy Reading!
~L

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38 comments:

  1. Alex J. CavanaughNovember 5, 2014 at 6:20 AM

    There is a lot of drama at that age.
    Great review for Stephanie's book!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Kelly HashwayNovember 5, 2014 at 7:06 AM

    I read this and I'll be reviewing it on my blog next month. :)

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    Replies
    1. DMSNovember 10, 2014 at 7:28 PM

      Kelly- Awesome! Can't wait to hear your thoughts. :) ~L

      Delete
  3. Stephanie FarisNovember 5, 2014 at 8:28 AM

    Thank you for such a great review!!! I'm glad you enjoy it and I'm honored to be featured on a blog I've been reading for so long.

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    Replies
    1. DMSNovember 10, 2014 at 7:28 PM

      Stephanie- We are so happy to have you here! :) So glad you enjoyed the review. ~Jess and Stephanie

      Delete
  4. Felicity Grace TerryNovember 5, 2014 at 8:29 AM

    I also really liked this book and was so pleased it was full of your 'average' kids and not all perfect specimens.

    Wonderful review, I enjoyed reading your thoughts.

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    1. Stephanie FarisNovember 5, 2014 at 9:17 AM

      Thank you, Tracy! I certainly was far from perfect in school, so I can much more easily relate to the kids who don't get roses than I could the popular kids who are covered in them!

      Delete
    2. DMSNovember 10, 2014 at 7:29 PM

      Tracy- Very nicely put! :) I enjoyed reading your thoughts on the book too! ~L

      Delete
  5. Cherie ReichNovember 5, 2014 at 10:23 AM

    Congrats to Stephanie! Her book looks so cute, and I can see how an act of kindness can be blown out of proportion. Thanks for the review!

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    Replies
    1. DMSNovember 10, 2014 at 7:30 PM

      Cherie- It was definitely interesting to read about an act of kindness being blown out of proportion. :) ~L

      Delete
  6. Anna (herding cats-burning soup)November 5, 2014 at 6:20 PM

    Aws it sounds lovely :) Mia sounds like a great girl :)

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  7. Molly MortensenNovember 5, 2014 at 7:14 PM

    Sounds like something that would happen to me. She meant well but wound up causing all sorts of trouble. I haven't read this book but it sounds sweet. :)

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    1. DMSNovember 10, 2014 at 7:33 PM

      Molly- It is sweet and a good reminder that things don't always turn out like we think they will. :) ~L

      Delete
  8. klahanieNovember 5, 2014 at 7:26 PM

    Oops and hello there. Yes, thought it about time I um, rose from my blogging hibernation. I bet you missed me! Then again, who is this person commenting?

    How enticing for Stephanie's book! I know Stephanie and I would like to sneak in this chance to apologise to her for my missing in action on her wonderful blog site.

    I'm outta' here....

    Some dude named, Gary :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. DMSNovember 10, 2014 at 7:34 PM

      Hello Gary- You have been missed! So nice to hear from you. :) Your rose from your blog hibernation at just the right time! I am so glad you were able to swing by for a review of one of your friend's books!

      Hope all is well. :) ~L

      Delete
  9. Carol KilgoreNovember 5, 2014 at 7:48 PM

    Great to see Stephanie's book here. I haven't read it, but it sounds great.

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  10. Meradeth HoustonNovember 5, 2014 at 10:49 PM

    This looks so sweet! I'm happy to see Stephanie's book featured :)

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    Replies
    1. DMSNovember 10, 2014 at 7:35 PM

      Meradeth- How cool that you know Stephanie too! :) ~L

      Delete
  11. UnknownNovember 6, 2014 at 11:48 AM

    I loved your positive review and how Monday's riddle fit into this post! It sounds like a very sweet book. Congrats to Stephanie!

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    1. DMSNovember 10, 2014 at 7:35 PM

      Lexa- Awesome job noticing the connection between the riddle and the review. :) It is a sweet book! :) ~L

      Delete
  12. Sherry EllisNovember 6, 2014 at 12:45 PM

    So nice to see Stephanie's book featured here! You've given it a really good review!

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    1. DMSNovember 10, 2014 at 7:36 PM

      Sherry- So glad you stopped by to read the review. :) We are happy to have Stephanie here! ~Jess and Stephanie

      Delete
  13. Elizabeth SeckmanNovember 6, 2014 at 2:28 PM

    Waves to Stephanie!!! I read the first book- 30 Days No Gossip- awesome story. A fun story with truth and heart.

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    1. DMSNovember 10, 2014 at 7:37 PM

      Elizabeth- I can't wait to read 30 Days No Gossip.Stephanie writes very realistic characters. :) ~L

      Delete
  14. AnonymousNovember 6, 2014 at 10:24 PM

    I read Stephanie's first book and hope to read this one.

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    1. DMSNovember 10, 2014 at 7:38 PM

      Medeia- Awesome that you read her first book. I look forward to reading it! :) ~L

      Delete
  15. Yanting GuehNovember 6, 2014 at 11:01 PM

    One look at the book cover and I knew it's Stephanie's! I haven't read her books yet but I know of a student who'd love to. In fact, when I was her age, I would have sought this out. I'll find a copy of it and pass it to her soon!

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    Replies
    1. DMSNovember 10, 2014 at 7:38 PM

      Claudine- How cool that you could recognize Stephanie's book by the cover style. :) Maybe you will win a copy in the interview and your student will get to read it that way. ~L

      Delete
    2. Stephanie FarisNovember 11, 2014 at 10:01 AM

      This made me smile! :-)

      Delete
    3. DMSNovember 11, 2014 at 11:12 PM

      Stephanie- Always great to know we made someone smile. :) ~Jess and Stephanei

      Delete
  16. DMSNovember 10, 2014 at 7:31 PM

    Heidi- I think it is wonderful! that you have added it to your kids' list. :) ~L

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  17. Olivia's CatastropheJanuary 10, 2015 at 2:49 PM

    I just saw this book featured on another persons blog, and once I saw you wrote a review of it too I knew I needed to stop by! This book sounds perfect for my little sister because she is just at that age where boys are coming into the picture. Great review!

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    Replies
    1. DMSJanuary 12, 2015 at 10:57 AM

      Olivia- Savannah- Thanks for stopping by the review! If your sister is just at the age where boys are coming into the picture- then this is a perfect book for her! :) I know she will love it.
      ~L

      Delete
  18. Adriana @ BooksOnHerMindJanuary 17, 2015 at 3:00 PM

    Mia sounds like a sweetheart but I think what she did might be called cheating? I'm sure there will be a lot of drama in this one. I like that the MC buys the roses for kids who don't usually get attention. I know that would have made me feel special if I got a rose from her.

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    Replies
    1. DMSJanuary 19, 2015 at 9:39 PM

      Adriana- Mia is so sweet. Luckily, she does pay for all the roses, she just doesn't admit she was the one who bought them. :) She definitely made a lot of people feel special. ~L

      Delete

Thank you for stopping by and commenting. We love to hear your thoughts! We had to turn on comment moderation due to a high volume of spam. Fairday's Blog is no longer accepting awards. We appreciate all the nominations that we have received and are honored to have been mentioned! Happy Reading!