Crystal

Rating:
Summary: Book Review
Review: The book Crystal, by Walter Dean Myers was a good book in my opinion. This book was a great acount of what life is like to be a teenage model in America. Crystal is a drop dead gorgeous African American fashion model in New York City with a big modeling career ahead of her. Crystal overcame many obstacles in this book. There was always pressure for her to stay thin, look beautiful, and date the right boys for publicity purposes. In this book, Crystal went on many photo shoots where the photographers criticized her and told her that they didnt think she was pretty enough, or that she was too dark. Crystal learned to balance her modeling career along with her education. This became stressful at times for Crystal because she would have photo shoots in the morning, then go directly to school until late. Crystal's mom was always pushing her to do more modeling because she was a model herself when she was younger but her career never went anywhere. Crystal's dad is very protective of his daughter because he knows that she is very beautiful and doesn't want her to date any guys. Her photographer and agent try to pressure her into taking more seductive photos and wear more seductive clothes for the photo shoots, but Crystal doesn't want to.
Crystal develops a strong friendship with a fellow model who she works with. Crystal's friend didn't take all of the pressures of modeling as well as Crystal did, because she didn't have any family or friends besides Crystal there for her. She ended up overdoseing on pills. Crystal visited her in the hospital with hopes that she would live.

Rating:
Summary: An Insider's View of the Glamorous Life
Review: Crystal Brown is just beginning to achieve success in the competitive glamorous modeling profession. She is a high school student by day and a participant in a fast-paced lifestyle in the evenings. The direction of her career forces her to decide which is more important to her - fame and fortune or self-respect. Athough the universal appeal of Crystal might not be as strong as other works by Myers such as Bad Boy or Monster, his character development and narrative are of high quality.

Rating:
Summary: 4.5, really. Well-researched, brilliantly told.
Review: CRYSTAL is a fine book with an important message. I love the vivid pictures of the modeling world, and the way Crystal herself is such a real girl. She's beautiful, but you won't hate her for being so lucky, because Myers keeps her real and presents the downsides of modeling and Crystal's life being devoured by it. While it's aimed at girls ages 10-14, older girls would enjoy it also.

The only reason I took of half a star is the ending. I won't spoil that for you, but if you've read it, maybe you noticed that Crystal has no ther talents, as far as we know, besides her modeling. If Myers had developed her poetry more, or schoolwork or acting or anything, given her a talent besides being gorgeous, then I would be more satisfied. Perhaps she could have gone into a different, less sexy kind of modeling; cereal ads, TV commercials, whatever; or maybe she could have a talent like poetry (which she has, but it's not mentioned very often) that she could turn to.

But I really loved this book. Myers is so good at thinking as Crystal would: for example, Crystal is meeting a new person, and it says something like "In her mind, Crystal made the woman up. Powder, a less ridiculous lip color, mascara...it didn't help." Of course, a model would think of make up. It's so perfectly told. I also like the fact that Crystal is black, and beautiful. It teaches African-American girls that they don't need pink apple cheeks and golden hair to be pretty--and also, that your looks are tiny compared to what's inside you. All in all, it's a terrific book, well-researched and brilliantly told. Read it!

Rating:
Summary: Great book for kids and adults alike!
Review: This book is not your average fairy tale! It shows you the true side of modeling and what it takes to get here. This is a great read and will keep you in suspense until the very end!

Rating:
Summary: Crystal Clear
Review: This book is very good, but hard to find! I fouund it at my local library. It is about a 16 year old model named Crystal, and how she's going straight to the top of the modeling world, and how there is another side of her, one that doesn't want to grow up to soon, and sees the dark things in the modeling world, and thinks that the price is too much for her to pay! Read this book!

Rating:
Summary: pretty good (no pun intended, well maybe! lol)
Review: This was a nice book. It really made you see the modeling world from a whole different point of view. I liked it!