Book Review: A Midsummer Tights Dream By Louise Rennison

I honestly don't know how I fell upon Louise Rennison, and not fell on her in a literal sense. I loved the Princess Diaries by Meg Cabot, but that was only one book a year. I wanted to find something else to read and at the time, I was not so well versed in the genre of young adult books. I honestly can't remember what made me pick up Angus, Thongs and Full Frontal Snogging. A moment of lunacy or a moment of clarity? I can't really say. Is she mad? That is without doubt, but she is also brilliant. I could not put down Angus.

While Mia and Michael are one of my favorite literary couples, I cannot deny that Georgia Nicholson is without a doubt, the craziest character I have ever come across and all her friends as well.  

When I found out the first two books were turned into a movie, I couldn't wait to see it live on the screen. Sadly, it never made it over here, but a year later, it was released on DVD. Again, sadly, not over here. My brother downloaded a copy for me which I had to be satisfied with, but I was so happy when a version was released for the US.

I was really sad when I had finished reading the final book in the series and even sadder that Georgia didn't end up with the guy I thought she should really be with, but it was a really funny series none the less. When I found out Ms. Rennison was writing a new series, I was overjoyed and thus I met Tallulah Casey, Georgia's cousin from Ireland and if the first two books are any indication, she is even more of a madcap loon than Georgia is.

Book Description (from Amazon):
Release Date: June 26, 2012 | Series: Misadventures of Tallulah Casey
Performing Arts college, here I come again! Hold on to your tights!! Because I'm holding on to mine, I can tell you.

Tallulah Casey is back and ready to Irish-comedy-dance her way through another term at Dother Hall, but now that she's been officially admitted to the performing arts program, that won't cut it anymore. Especially if she's going to help raise enough money to keep the school from closing at the end of the year.

There are also some . . . distractions to worry about: The boys of Woolfe Academy are lingering about. And they are still boys, so they are still confusing.

Will Tallulah be able to test out her new snogging skills and ace her performance in this term's project, A Midsummer Night's Dream? Only time and more Irish comedy dancing will tell.

Louise Rennison returns with her trademark sidesplitting humor, sending Tallulah and her mates on another riotously spectacular (mis)adventure.

My Review:
I have to say, I love British humor and have done since back in the days when Monty Python was being aired on PBS. So, this book felt like coming home.

I love Tallulah! She is such a great character. She is confused about her sticky outy parts and doesn't know what to do about any of it or who to talk to about it. Sure, she has some mates from Dither Hall, I mean Dother Hall, but none of them are exactly experts.

For instance, she claims she has Tourette's of the legs as she is prone to break out into spontaneous Irish dancing. She is obsessed with the length of her legs and the fact that she has nobby knees, hoping to one day grow into her knees. She is waiting for normal body parts to grow and keeps measuring her chest to see if her bust size has increased.

She is at a performing arts school, but by her confession, cannot sing, dance or act, but she so desperately wants to climb the ladder of Showbiz and wear the golden slippers of applause.

Then there are the boys in her life. There is Ben, who kissed her in Book 1 who she refers to as Bat Boy. When he kissed her, she said it was like a bat flying about in her mouth. There is Charlie, who kissed her in Book 1, but then told her he had a girlfriend. There is Alex, the brother of her mate, Ruby, whose father owns the Blind Pig Pub. Alex is her dream guy who she refers to as Alex the Good, but he is also away at college. so she doesn't really get to see him. And then there's Cain, the resident bad boy who seems to be a player and always seems to have a way of showing up at the worst of times when Tallulah is acting less than normal.

She is confused about her body, confused about boys and what they want as well as how to interact with them on a romantic level. It is amusing to follow along as she and her Tree Sister friends stumble their way through adolescence, love and relationships with a bit of Irish dancing thrown in the mix.

Her sole source of wisdom and expertise is her cousin Georgia and Georgia's mates and if any of you have read the Confessions of Georgia Nicholson series, only hilarity can ensue.

If you're looking for a lighthearted laugh, I would highly recommend these books. Book 1 in the series is Withering Tights and they are well worth the time to read. They'll have you "laughing like a loon on loon tablets"!

Warning: Contents include snogging and lots of talk about snogging. I wouldn't recommend for the very young.