Charmed, I'm Sure
Charmed, I'm Sure
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Aladdin
Annotation: Rosie, the daughter of Snow White and Prince Charming, goes on a mission to become the fairest in the land, but a magical compact and a flashy makeover may be turning her into a wicked princess.
Genre: [Fantasy fiction]
 
Reviews: 4
Catalog Number: #129856
Format: Publisher's Hardcover
Publisher: Aladdin
Copyright Date: 2016
Edition Date: 2016 Release Date: 09/27/16
Pages: 193 pages
ISBN: 1-481-45127-8
ISBN 13: 978-1-481-45127-7
Dewey: Fic
Dimensions: 22 cm.
Language: English
Reviews:
Kirkus Reviews

Rosie White Charming is an ordinary eighth-grader in New York City—who happens to be the beloved daughter of Prince Charming and Snow White Charming. The white girl's parents have thoroughly embraced modern life, building a very successful web-based business, Charming Lifestyles, that includes advice and their own product line. At least until now, Rosie has remained very much her own person, wearing sneakers and thrift store clothing and having fun with her friends. But she is dateless for the upcoming school dance and reluctantly asks her mom for help. A huge makeover, involving hairstyle, clothing, makeup, and the gift of a mirrored compact changes not only her appearance, but how she is seen by her peers and how she sees herself. Like the magic mirror in her parents' story, the compact's mirror speaks to her, goading her into behaviors that are against her own nature and reminding her of the wicked queen. Somehow she manages to take control, regain her true self, learn an important life lesson, and go to the dance with a really nice boy, also white. (Rosie's New York City is not a particularly diverse one.) There are many moments of laugh-out-loud fun in Littman's mishmash of fairy tale and quirky reality, including appearances by Rosie's "height disadvantaged ‘uncles.' " Rosie is loving and compassionate, and she narrates her tale with wit, humor, and just the right amount of middle school angst. Inventive and, yes, charming. (Fantasy. 9-14)<

School Library Journal (Fri Jul 01 00:00:00 CDT 2016)

Gr 4-6 When your parents are Snow White and Prince Charming, stars of one of the most romantic tales of all time, the pressure to find a date to the Fall Festive dance can be pretty intense. So Rosie decides to ask her mom, who has parlayed the tale of how she and her prince met into CharmingIndustries.com , for help. Her mother writes articles like "You Too Can Meet Your Prince Charming: 12 Easy Steps To Make It Happen" and tries to solve Rosie's problem through a makeover and the gift of a magic mirror compact. At first, Rosie's unsure that she needs a makeover at allshe's a self-assured and confident seventh grader who doesn't buy into the idea that she needs to change to make a boy like her. But the magic mirror begins to convince her that becoming the "fairest of them all" is the only way to get a date to the dance. Will Rosie follow the mirror's advice, get the date, and live happily ever after? And will she still feel good about herself if that happens? Littman has crafted a fun, if somewhat predictable, twist on the standard middle-schooler-needs-a-date story by adding fairy-tale references, including the seven dwarfs acting as Rosie's "uncles" (and providing terrible advice). She also mixes in pop culture references and current slang ("rando," "amirite"). However, these additions may be at the expense of secondary characters like Rosie's friends, who don't feel fully realized. VERDICT Purchase for libraries where modern takes on fairy tales and light friendship/dating dramas are popular. Mary Kuehner, Denver Public Library

Publishers Weekly (Fri Oct 06 00:00:00 CDT 2023)

In this playful update of a classic fairy tale, Rosamunde White Charming, the daughter of Snow White and Prince Charming (who now run a website called Charming Lifestyles), would -be happy to swear off romance forever if I weren-t Rosie Charming with a family legacy to uphold.- Rosie is desperate for a date to her Manhattan middle school dance, but she takes all the wrong advice to reach her goal. When Rosie-s mother gives her an expensive makeover and a bejeweled, talking compact, the formerly kind and low-key teen starts to change, taking her lead from the mirror-s dark source. Focused on being -the fairest in the land,- Rosie loses sight of who she really is, hurting her friends and her chances for the right date. Readers will enjoy Littman-s (Backlash) riffs on and jabs at the original story (on how Rosie-s parents met: -Every time I imagine being totally passed out and waking up to find some strange guy kissing me, all I think is, -Eww, nope! Nope! Nope!- -) and take heart in the underlying message about being true to oneself. Ages 8-12. Agent: Jennifer Laughran, Andrea Brown Literary. (Sept.)

Horn Book (Tue Aug 01 00:00:00 CDT 2017)

Daughters of fairy-tale icons attend middle school in NYC. Sleeping Beauty's daughter, Aria, dreams of being a clothing designer, but her parents--understandably!--have something against needles (Fairest). Before the dance, Rosie White Charming, descendant of Snow and Prince, gets a makeover with help from her mom's magic compact (Charmed). Despite superficial fashion details and muddled lessons on beauty, the breezy takeoffs have appeal.

Reviewing Agencies: - Find Other Reviewed Titles
Kirkus Reviews
School Library Journal (Fri Jul 01 00:00:00 CDT 2016)
Publishers Weekly (Fri Oct 06 00:00:00 CDT 2023)
Horn Book (Tue Aug 01 00:00:00 CDT 2017)
Word Count: 36,890
Reading Level: 5.2
Interest Level: 3-6
Accelerated Reader: reading level: 5.2 / points: 6.0 / quiz: 191419 / grade: Middle Grades
Lexile: 800L
Charmed, I’m Sure

Chapter One




I AM NOW OFFICIALLY A loser.

Thirty seconds ago, my best friend Katie announced that Quinn Fairchild asked her to the Fall Festive. Last week Dave Theis asked my other best friend, Nicole. Which leaves me as the only one of my friends without a date.

What makes it worse is that I’m the sole heir of two of the most famous people in fairy tale history. You may have heard of them: Snow White and Prince Charming.

The Charming name comes with some serious baggage. Especially when you’re an eighth grader at the Manhattan World Themes Middle School, there’s a dance in two weeks’ time, and you don’t have a date.

You, the one whose mom was so beautiful that her stepmother went on a killing spree just so she could reclaim the title of Fairest in the Land as judged by some crazy talking mirror. You, the one whose prince of a father literally rode in on a white horse to start their happily ever after.

Yep, that’s me. Rosamunde White Charming. My friends call me Rosie.

But now isn’t the time to indulge in self-pity. Now is the time to be happy for Katie, because she does have a date, namely Quinn Fairchild, whom she has been crushing on forever.

“That’s the best news!” I tell Katie. Which it is, for her. Personally, I’m not a big fan of Quinn Fairchild. He’s a little (okay, a lot) too full of himself. But if going to the Fall Festive with him makes Katie happy, what kind of friend would I be if I weren’t happy for her?

“I know!” Katie sighs. Her face takes on the same dreamy glow Mom’s does when she tells The Tale of how she and Dad met. “I’ve been waiting for this day since I saw him the first day of sixth grade. And now it’s finally happened.”

“I just hope he’s worth the wait,” I say.

Katie’s dreamy glow disappears.

“Sheesh, Rosie. Just because you were born without the romance gene, it doesn’t mean you have to rain on Katie’s parade,” Nicole says.

“I didn’t mean to,” I protest.

“Well, you did,” Katie snaps. “A big, gray, damp cloud of precipitation, right in the middle of my happy marching band.”

“Sorry,” I mumble.

“It’s okay,” Katie says. She gives me a concerned, pitying look. “Are you stressed out about finding a date?”

She’s half-right, so I might as well take the lifeline she’s thrown me.

“Yeah. I guess.”

“I know! You should go with Quinn’s friend Hunter,” Katie exclaims. “It would be fun to double date. Plus, he’s cute and you’d look great in pictures together.”

Hunter Farthington is the star striker on the soccer team. The problem is that I sit behind him in social studies, and let’s just say that while I can’t argue with the cute part, he’s not the sharpest tool in the Manhattan World Themes Middle School shed. He thinks people from Denmark are called “Great Danes.”

“Who cares?” Katie says when I tell her this and explain that, no, he was serious, not joking, and actually argued with the teacher about it because he was so convinced he was right. “It’s a dance, not a debate, Rosie.”

“But we won’t be dancing all the time. I’ve got nothing to say to him. All he ever talks about is soccer and what famous people he’s seen on the street and harassed till they took a selfie with him.”

“Just pretend,” Katie says. “Ask him what he thinks about last night’s game. That way, it doesn’t matter whether it’s football or basketball, hockey or baseball season. There’s always some kind of game going on somewhere.”

“Why do I have to pretend to be interested in something he likes just to get a date?” I ask. “Shouldn’t he pretend to be interested in me, too? Is being fake the way to get a guy to like me?”

“You’re totally overthinking this, Rosie,” Katie says. “It’s a problem you have. Think of it this way: He’s a boy, he’s cute, and he can dance. Make it happen.”

Like that’s so easy.

“I think you might be better off with Damien Wolfe,” Nicole argues. “He’s more your type. You’d make such a cute couple.”

Damien’s in my math class. He always sits in the back row, his dark hair brushing over the collar of his leather jacket as he bends forward over his notebook, scribbling intently with black pen. He draws. Really well, in fact. Damien definitely seems interesting. There’s just one slight problem. I’ve barely spoken three words to him in my life. He’s super quiet and I’ve never been assigned to work with him on a project. So . . . yeah. About three words. Maybe five. Plus a few passing head nods in the hall. His hair moves nicely when he nods his head—I’ll give him that.

Still . . .

“How do you know he’s my type?” I ask Nicole.

“He . . . just is,” she says. That’s a big help.

“Ask him to the dance. You won’t regret it,” Nicole declares.

Considering I’ve never been on an actual date, or even had a real crush, I don’t get how she can know “my type.” I haven’t even figured it out yet.

“Now that we’ve solved Rosie’s date problem, can we get back to the matter at hand?” Katie says.

“Which is . . . ?” I inquire.

“Dress shopping,” she announces. “On Saturday. I need your expert opinions.”

Fashion isn’t my area of expertise, but hanging out with my friends is.

“Works for me,” I say.

“Sounds like a plan,” Nicole agrees.

“I’ll make a list of stores,” Katie says.

Knowing Katie, this shopping trip is going to be planned with the detail and precision of a major military campaign. Note to self: Wear comfortable shoes and bring snacks.

While I listen to my friends discussing dresses and dates, I’m conscious that time is ticking by, and I have neither.

That’s when I decide I’m desperate enough to do something that I promised myself I would never do, because all previous attempts have ended so badly:

I’m going to ask my mother for advice.

Excerpted from Charmed, I'm Sure by Sarah Darer Littman
All rights reserved by the original copyright owners. Excerpts are provided for display purposes only and may not be reproduced, reprinted or distributed without the written permission of the publisher.

Rosie White Charming—the daughter of Snow White and Prince Charming—discovers that being the fairest in the land isn’t all that it’s cracked up to be in this charming continuation of the beloved fairy tale.

Meet Rosie White Charming. You probably know her parents, Snow and Prince. Yup—that Snow and Prince. You would think that being the only daughter of two of the most famous people in fairy tale history would be awesome.

But you would be wrong.

After failing to secure a date for the Fall Festive dance, Rosie is on a mission to prove that the daughter of the fairest in the land can actually hold her own. With the help of a mysterious and magical compact that her mother gives her (and a nice blowout from her mother’s favorite salon) Rosie starts to become the person she thinks she should be. But is being the fairest in all of the land really going to give Rosie her happily-ever-after?


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