ARC Review: Mean Girls

Title: Mean Girls

Author: Micol Ostow

Genre & Age Group: Contemporary, retelling, young adult

Goodreads Synopsis:

You know the story–or do you?

Cady Heron grew up homeschooled in Africa with scientist parents as her teachers, monkeys as her classmates and the African plains as her playground. But when her family moves to the suburbs of Illinois, she finds herself a stranger in a strange land: high school.

With no prior research to guide her, Cady’s forced to figure out North Shore High all on her own. Suddenly she finds herself sucked into Girl World as a new member of the social elite dubbed “The Plastics.” Cady discovers that unlike the wild, Girl World doesn’t have any rules–especially when you maybe, possibly, okay definitely, have a giant crush on their ruthless leader’s ex-boyfriend. Turns out, life in high school might be even more brutal than a showdown on the Savannah.

Based on the screenplay by Tina Fey, this retelling of the cult classic film includes tons of extra, never-before-seen bonus content.

Source: Thanks so much to Indigo Books & Music Inc. for providing me with a physical ARC of this book!

Because I am a huge fan of the movie Mean Girls, I was elated when I found out that there was a novel retelling being released. Mean Girls is that film that all teenage girls need to see for its morals on standing out versus fitting in, and I’m very glad that the readers of the teen world now have a book from which they can receive the same messages.

It came as no surprise to me that I loved this book, as well! It is extremely similar to the movie and I did not really note any obvious differences. However, for once I would recommend watching the movie first as this is a book based on it; not the other way around.

If you don’t know the story of the legendary Mean Girls, it follows a girl named Cady Heron as she goes from being homeschooled in Africa to attending public school in the US. When she first starts school in the US, she is a bit standoffish and uneducated about the social norms. When the popular, feared group of Plastics encounter Cady, they decide to reel her into their group. Will Cady be comfortable with this, and if so, will it change her for worse?

I have always adored the sweet and intuitive character of Cady. Characters like her are the reason why I am constantly sucked back into YA fiction books and chick flicks like these. Although it definitely wasn’t right for the Plastics to manipulate her to change herself for their approval, we all know that this is what inspires her to grow and develop. Without a problem, an effective story cannot exist, and ultimately, this part of the story is what enamours millions.

Reading this book was just like rewatching the movie in my head- I could easily picture each and every scene, and what was especially awesome is that readers get to see the POVs of more than just Cady. In many ways, this novel seems much more personal than the movie as readers glimpse into the lives of every main character. Those who have not seen the movie may get confused between all the POVs- which is why I recommend watching it first- but those who have will gain a deeper understanding of each character and be able to distinguish them based on prior knowledge.

All in all, I was incredibly happy to have been able to experience the classic story of Mean Girls in written form. I believe that the movie will always be a legacy in the teenage culture, and adding a book into the mix helps make the story and its amazing morals live on for even longer. So, if you’re in love with the movie, then what are you waiting for? 😉

*I received an advanced reader copy of this book from Indigo Books & Music Inc. in exchange for an honest review.*

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RATING:

🎓🎓🎓🎓🎓

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What are some movie-to-book adaptations you’ve read? Do you support novels being written much after their corresponding movies are released?