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Critics' Opinion:
Readers' Opinion:
First Published:
Apr 2008, 240 pages
Paperback:
Apr 2009, 256 pages
Book Reviewed by:
Jo Perry
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With Lucky, Rachel Vail begins a powerful sisterhood trilogy, comprised of one book for each of the three fascinating Avery sisters, with all their secrets laid bare during the year that completely changes their lives.
It's all good . . . and lucky Phoebe Avery plans to celebrate by throwing an end-of-the-year bash with her four closest friends. Everything will be perfect—from the guest list to the fashion photographer to the engraved invitations. The only thing left to do is find the perfect dress . . . until Phoebe goes from having it all to hiding all she's lost.
Phoebe's older sisters warn her to keep the family's crisis totally secret. Unfortunately, her alpha-girl best friend looks increasingly suspicious, and Phoebe's crush starts sending seriously mixed signals. Phoebe tries hard to keep smiling, but when her mother is humiliated in Neiman Marcus while buying Phoebe that perfect dress and her father decides to cancel her party, she panics. How far will she go to keep up her image as a lucky girl?
With Lucky, Rachel Vail begins a powerful sisterhood trilogy, comprised of one book for each of the three fascinating Avery sisters, with all their secrets laid bare during the year that completely changes their lives. Phoebe is the youngest; her story combines first love and flip-flops, friendship and sisterhood, humor and tears. Breezy, witty, and poignant, lucky is Rachel Vail at her breathtaking best.
Chapter One
Our toaster is moody.
When I got down to the kitchen this morning, just my sisters were there. I said good morning to them. Allison grunted. Quinn said, "Morning. Waffles?" She was putting three frozen waffles into the toaster, one for each of us.
"Yum," I said, but I couldn't wait, so I grabbed a Smoothie out of the fridge. "Where's my Teen Vogue?"
"Should be in the trash. How can you read that crap?" Allison said, grabbing the Smoothie out of my hand to read the label. "You like these?"
I shrugged. "I wake up hungry."
"I'd give anything for your metabolism," Allison grumbled, handing the Smoothie back to me.
"Trade you for your white sweater," I said between gulps.
"I wish." She kicked off her sneakers.
"You're both skinnier than I am, so shut up," Quinn commented without looking up from whatever she was doing on her laptop.
"I'm not skinny," Allison said, yanking off her socks. "I'm interesting ...
Vail confidently and brilliantly describes the cruel dynamics of female hierarchies, their moment-to-moment coercions and sharp little miseries. The antithesis of Jerry Spinelli's quirky and individualistic heroine in Stargirl, Phoebe is still a richly developed character who grows in good and surprising ways. Still I wonder why Vail had to make Bridget Burgess's mother so repellent, and why Phoebe's world is so rich and so white. I would have liked to see Vail use her great ear for young voices to invent more diverse characters who live in a more complicated and realistic world...continued
Full Review
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(Reviewed by Jo Perry).
Lucky's cover features a lime-green dream dress that
Phoebe plans to wear to her over-the-top 8th grade graduation party.
That beautiful dress, the way it makes Phoebe feel when she tries it on, and the
way it makes her feel when she realizes that her parents can no longer afford
to buy it for her, embodies Phoebe's expectations and disappointments throughout
the novel.
Many organizations work to make sure that every girl, no matter
her economic situation, can feel beautiful in her own dream dress at the prom,
dance or graduation party. These groups collect and distribute gently worn,
clean and stylish prom, bridesmaid, and party dresses. Here's a list of some of
these groups in the U.S. and Canada:
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