Debbie's review

A Crooked Kind of Perfect
by Linda Urban

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<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1535111.A_Crooked_Kind_of_Perfect?utm_medium=api&amp;utm_source=blog_review" style="float: left; padding-right: 20px"><img alt="A Crooked Kind of Perfect" border="0" src="http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1184859587m/1535111.jpg" /></a> <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1535111.A_Crooked_Kind_of_Perfect?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_review">A Crooked Kind of Perfect</a> by <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/715443.Linda_Urban">Linda Urban</a><br/><br/>
  <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/7755058?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_review"><h3>My review</h3></a>
  rating: 5 of 5 stars<br/>I found this book both sweet and funny.  As a childhood piano player, I found myself really identifying with the protagonist.
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<br/>From School Library Journal
<br/>Grade 4–6—An impressive and poignant debut novel. Eleven-year-old Zoe dreams of giving piano recitals at Carnegie Hall. When her father purchases a Perfectone D-60, though, she must settle for the sounds of the organ rather than the distinguished sounds of a baby grand. Her organ teacher, Mabelline Person, notices the child's small talent for music and recommends her for the "Perfectone Perform-O-Rama"; she will play Neil Diamond's "Forever in Blue Jeans." Accepting this new twist to her ambitions, Zoe must depend on a quirky support system: her father, who gets anxious when he leaves the house and who earns diplomas from Living Room University; her workaholic mother; and her classmate Wheeler, who follows Zoe home from school daily to spend time with her father, baking. Playing television theme songs from the '60s and '70s rather than Bach doesn't get Zoe down. Instead, aware of the stark difference between her dream and her reality, she forges ahead and, as an underdog, faces the uncertainty of entering the competition. In the end, resilient and resourceful Zoe finds perfection in the most imperfect and unique situations, and she shines. The refreshing writing is full of pearls of wisdom, and readers will relate to this fully developed character. The sensitive story is filled with hope and humor. It has a feel-good quality and a subtle message about how doing one's best and believing in oneself are what really matter.—Jennifer Cogan, Bucks County Free Library, Doylestown, PA 
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  <br/><br/><a href="http://www.goodreads.com/review/list/522548?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_review">View all my reviews.</a>

Debbie's review
rating:

bookshelves: 4th-6th_grade, realistic_fiction
recommended for: girls; piano players
status: Read in October, 2007

I found this book both sweet and funny. As a childhood piano player, I found myself really identifying with the protagonist.

From School Library Journal
Grade 4–6—An impressive and poignant debut novel. Eleven-year-old Zoe dreams of giving piano recitals at Carnegie Hall. When her father purchases a Perfectone D-60, though, she must settle for the sounds of the organ rather than the distinguished sounds of a baby grand. Her organ teacher, Mabelline Person, notices the child's small talent for music and recommends her for the "Perfectone Perform-O-Rama"; she will play Neil Diamond's "Forever in Blue Jeans." Accepting this new twist to her ambitions, Zoe must depend on a quirky support system: her father, who gets anxious when he leaves the house and who earns diplomas from Living Room University; her workaholic mother; and her classmate Wheeler, who follows Zoe home from school daily to spend time with her father, baking. Playing television theme songs from ...more

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