The Vinyl Princess by Yvonne Prinz

Title: The Vinyl Princess
Author: Yvonne Prinz
Pages: 320
Publisher: HarperTeen
Publication Date: December 22, 2009

Summer is here, and 16-year-old Allie, a self-professed music geek, is exactly where she wants to be: working full-time at Berkeley’s ultra-cool Bob and Bob Records. There, Allie can spend her days bantering with the street people, talking the talk with the staff, shepherding the uncool bridge-and-tunnel shoppers, all the while blissfully surrounded by music, music, music. It’s the perfect setup for her to develop her secret identity as The Vinyl Princess, author of both a brand-new zine and blog. From the safety of her favourite place on earth, Allie is poised to have it all: love, music and blogging.
Her mother, though, is actually the one getting the dates, and business at Allie’s beloved record store is becoming dangerously slow—not to mention that there have been a string of robberies in the neighborhood. At least her blog seems to be gaining interest, one vinyl junkie at a time….

Allie, a complete music geek, has got the perfect summer job at Bob & Bob Records. A lot can happen in a store full of records. It's the perfect place to fall in love, try to solve a mystery, and develop her secret identity as The Vinyl Princess. Her blog and zine get more attention that she expected, and a thief is on the loose, stealing and pointing guns at cashiers...it's a good thing Allie's ready for anything right? And sure, business is slow, but is she ready for Bob&Bob's to close down?

Allie is the epitome of a vinyl princess. She's funky, fab, and completely music-savvy. She is one spunky heroine! Allie isn't the only well-developed character in The Vinyl Princess; Prinz populates the book with quirky and friendly characters; each with his or her own individualized personality. But even with her entertaining line up of characters, the plot is disappointing, but with great potential. The execution of the plot itself is great, through Allie's humorous voice, but the plot is confusing with its aimless chain of events. Allie's (two!) love interests, and her relationship with each of them is underdeveloped and bland. And the conflict with the thief is also not as emphasized in the novel, but it works to Prinz's advantage because in doing this, she weaves more suspense into the novel. And on the other hand, Allie's best friend is gratifying and humorous! Kit is one funny and supportive BFF that anybody would love to have at their side! Allie's mom is also another character that absolutely supports Allie but she's more like Allie's friend, rather than a mom. While Allie's stuck between two, her mom is out there getting her groove on, jumping into the dating arena!

The Vinyl Princess really focuses on the blogging and music aspect. Allie's opinions on vinyls are compassionate and real. It's not any of that generic, fake *excuse my language* crap that some people just make up. Prinz offers a true, modern--and at the same time classic--take on life, music, and love. The Vinyl Princess is a light, pop-culture book that just needs a little polishing; it introduces a whole new genre to YA! A =)

The Bottom Line: I really enjoyed The Vinyl Princess. It's like nothing I've read before! It's probably the most modern, tech and music-savvy book out there!

---Report Card---
Originality: 10/10
Ending: 7/10
Characters: 9/10
Plot: 7/10
My reaction/enjoyment: 9/10
Theme: 9/10
Imagery: 10/10
Setting: 5/5
Voice: 5/5
Style: 4/5
Tone: 5/5
Cover: 10/10
Total Score: 90/100 (A)