Rock and Roll: Divas Supreme

Groovy Girls Sleepover Club #4

by Robin Epstein

This is a Groovy Girls Sleep Over Club book. "With the school talent show just around the corner, Gwen, Reese, Oki, O'Ryan, Vanessa, and Yvette form the Groovy Girls Rock Band!"

60 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2004

About the author

Robin Epstein is a writer, runner, professor and astronaut* (*in her own mind). Beginning her career as a comic and television writer. Her last young adult novel, God Is In the Pancakes, was an official selection of the 2012 New York State Reading Association (NYSRA) Charlotte Award Master List. She's written for the New York Times, Marie Claire, Glamour, as well as other publications. A contributor to This American Life on NPR, she also writes video games and books for TV shows on the Disney Channel. Robin attended Princeton University, got her MFA from Columbia University, and teaches at NYU. She currently lives in New York with her fetching pit bull Bandit.

Reviews

[Holly Letson · Rating 3 out of 5]

Yet another "Friendship Conquers All" chapter book. Not that impressive.
(But, if you like The Supremes' music, please do continue reading this review till the end. Thanks!)

The Groovy Girls form a band of sorts for the talent show, and the lead singer freezes up onstage from dreadful stage fright. She has to be saved by Yvette, a solo singer friend, who had quit the band to go solo - like Diana Ross from The Supremes that they all idolize so much. Turns out Yvette wins the school talent show, but then refuses to go to the district competition without The Groovy Girls.

Two things: Nobody that won first place would refuse to go on without one of the losing acts coming with her. And, most children who read this book are going to have to get on YouTube to find out who (Diana Ross and) The Supremes are, since they will have no idea.

Also, The Supremes had lots of hit songs besides *Stop! In the Name of Love* - Here's a few:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CpXHV...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fFg-2...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-3MGr...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ADOfc...

It's wonderful that these children were influenced by said group. They also influenced the 80's group, Soft Cell, who released an extended version of their song - *Tainted Love* - that included part of The Supremes' *Where Did Our Love Go?*. Here are both:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XF68O...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qTBmg...

Sorry so long a review. As little as I liked this book, I do love The Supremes' music.

[Sarah Zarymbski · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the fourth book in the Groovy Girls Sleep Over Club series. In this book, the girls start a band, so they each have to learn how to play a new instrument. Ultimately they put on a show for their parents and friends, and it shows how much fun you can have playing music with your friends. This was my least favorite book in the series when I was younger, because I wasn't into band or playing an instrument. But for kids that want to get started, it shows them that even though learning how to play an instrument could be hard at first, if you keep practicing you can get really good at it.

[Twilght · Rating 5 out of 5]

it was awesome