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The Cheetah Girls #1
Wishing on a Star
Galleria Garibaldi and Chanel Simmons meet Dorinda Rogers at Fashion Industries High School and then team up with Anginette and Aquanette Walker to form a singing group of their own, which they call the Cheetah Girls
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First published September 1, 1999
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Displaying 1 - 26 of 26 reviews
August 7, 2020
I'm so excited that I'm finally reading the books that inspired The Cheetah Girls movies that aired on Disney Channel. They were my obsession! I had no idea there were sixteen books in the Cheetah Girls book series, but they're relatively short and not intimidating in the slightest.
'Wishing On a Star' is the first book in the series. This one is told from the perspective of Galleria, who has huge dreams of being in a girl group with her best friend Chanel. Trouble is, they're short three members. Lo' and behold, quirky Dorinda and Southern twins Aquanette and Anginette magically appear when they're needed the most, and thus THE CHEETAH GIRLS are born!
Okay, so this is by no means a fantastic work of literature, especially when we have a main character who calls her mother "momsy-poo" and describes successful bands as "finger lickin' large"?? Also, "tommyknockers" for boobies is... something. BUT the characters are around fourteen years old, so it has this EXTREMELY cheesy and tween feel to it, in everything from the plot to the dialogue.
This is also very, very different to the movie in many ways, but also I can see where the inspiration was taken from in this. The characters (besides the white-washing of Dorinda in the movie, and the fact that Aqua has a twin sister who is the fifth Cheetah Girl when she doesn't exist in the movie) are rather likeable and alike to their movie counterparts - to an extent. Mannerisms and quirks are recognisable from the movie, and I liked how we are introduced to Jackal Johnson late in the book (and he carries over into the second). Galleria is our POV character so this is all her internal monologue, and sometimes she does grate on me. However, she is very young and this was written in the 90s.
What I do love about this book (and what I've read of the series so far) is the messages of friendship and girl power (or should I say GROWL power). This would be a perfect read for the in-between of middle grade and young adult, and it did make me smile a lot, even though it's cheesier than cheetos (see Galleria, I can play that game too). 3 cheetahlicious stars.
'Wishing On a Star' is the first book in the series. This one is told from the perspective of Galleria, who has huge dreams of being in a girl group with her best friend Chanel. Trouble is, they're short three members. Lo' and behold, quirky Dorinda and Southern twins Aquanette and Anginette magically appear when they're needed the most, and thus THE CHEETAH GIRLS are born!
Okay, so this is by no means a fantastic work of literature, especially when we have a main character who calls her mother "momsy-poo" and describes successful bands as "finger lickin' large"?? Also, "tommyknockers" for boobies is... something. BUT the characters are around fourteen years old, so it has this EXTREMELY cheesy and tween feel to it, in everything from the plot to the dialogue.
This is also very, very different to the movie in many ways, but also I can see where the inspiration was taken from in this. The characters (besides the white-washing of Dorinda in the movie, and the fact that Aqua has a twin sister who is the fifth Cheetah Girl when she doesn't exist in the movie) are rather likeable and alike to their movie counterparts - to an extent. Mannerisms and quirks are recognisable from the movie, and I liked how we are introduced to Jackal Johnson late in the book (and he carries over into the second). Galleria is our POV character so this is all her internal monologue, and sometimes she does grate on me. However, she is very young and this was written in the 90s.
What I do love about this book (and what I've read of the series so far) is the messages of friendship and girl power (or should I say GROWL power). This would be a perfect read for the in-between of middle grade and young adult, and it did make me smile a lot, even though it's cheesier than cheetos (see Galleria, I can play that game too). 3 cheetahlicious stars.
abandoned
July 17, 2014I can't express how grateful I was to abandon this book.
September 21, 2022
It took me a while to finish this book because it was just too cheesy. I enjoyed this series as a kid, so that’s the only only reason I marked this as four stars and not three. I must’ve enjoyed the cheesiness of the book back then.
One thing I am annoyed about is that the movie series did not feature an all black girl group for The Cheetah Girls. I remember picking these books as a kid because I saw five girls that looked like me on the cover. I hope if they reboot the movie series they make it an all Black cast. They also need to include some of the Black culture & sayings that were omitted from the movie series.
One thing I am annoyed about is that the movie series did not feature an all black girl group for The Cheetah Girls. I remember picking these books as a kid because I saw five girls that looked like me on the cover. I hope if they reboot the movie series they make it an all Black cast. They also need to include some of the Black culture & sayings that were omitted from the movie series.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
October 7, 2021
This reads really young. That's not a bad thing but I think I would have enjoyed this more back when it first came out and I was closer to the target age. I may continue and read the first 4 because this series switches between 4 povs. Also there is a 5th girl. Aqua has a twin in the books. Angie. And rewatching the movie i can see elements they took from this book.
April 21, 2025
A decent book for kids, unsurprisingly I'm not the demographic here.
November 30, 2022
The reading of this book was filmed in front of a live studio audience...
This book started out strong. I liked the message of diversity and I wish we could have seen a version of the films that stayed true to the all black group. The slang is hilariously 90s and let's be honest...I'm a nerdy white girl who can't really pull it off. The *ahem* near racial slur was less than good and there was quite a bit of fat shaming as is on par with the era unfortunately. A couple of the characters come off intensely unlikable for how much they basically bully each other.
Quotes from chat:
"Disney shouldn’t have white washed the cast."
“a surprisingly mean first entry in the cheetahverse”
"if you've watched trashy reality tv, you've read most of this book"
"It's strange to read a book about a friend group where it feels like all the friends can barely stand each other. in fact I feel weird calling it a friend group because they constantly insult each other. Except for when Galleria talks about Dorinda, in which she alternates between flirtation and babying her."
Cheetaliciously Yours,
The Scooby Drew Crew, 2022
This book started out strong. I liked the message of diversity and I wish we could have seen a version of the films that stayed true to the all black group. The slang is hilariously 90s and let's be honest...I'm a nerdy white girl who can't really pull it off. The *ahem* near racial slur was less than good and there was quite a bit of fat shaming as is on par with the era unfortunately. A couple of the characters come off intensely unlikable for how much they basically bully each other.
Quotes from chat:
"Disney shouldn’t have white washed the cast."
“a surprisingly mean first entry in the cheetahverse”
"if you've watched trashy reality tv, you've read most of this book"
"It's strange to read a book about a friend group where it feels like all the friends can barely stand each other. in fact I feel weird calling it a friend group because they constantly insult each other. Except for when Galleria talks about Dorinda, in which she alternates between flirtation and babying her."
Cheetaliciously Yours,
The Scooby Drew Crew, 2022
November 3, 2012
An okay story plagued by annoying dialogue and narration, as well as some crude references and dumb characters. I haven't seen the Disney Channel Original Movie that was inspired by this series, but, it has got to be better than this tripe. If you're looking for an enjoyable teen-centered novel, I suggest something from Madeleine L'Engle's Time Quintet, Anthony Horowitz's Alex Rider books, James Patterson's Maximum Ride, or any of Melody Carlson's or Robin Jones Gunn's numerous adolescent series. Heck, I adore Victorious and iCarly, and even I thought Wishing on a Star was terrible!
September 17, 2018
I read this series for the first time in middle school and decided to reread the first novel here on a whim after seeing some people talk about it. Since it was published in 1999, it's definitely a tad dated, but still full of girl power, sass, and music. I still think this is a great series for young readers!
October 14, 2016
Cute story, but the language is really cheesy. The author even puts a glossary at the end in case readers can't figure out what the characters are saying. I don't know if students would be interested in a book that regularly uses the phrase "jiggy jungle"... Haha.
Read
June 25, 2013Read this when it came out or thereabouts. I loved it even more this time.
August 29, 2025
Wishing On a Star (Updated)
Tomorrow is Galleria’s first day of high school at Fashion Industries High and Galleria is painting her nails “Pow” (purple) to take her mind off her nerves. Her best friend (Chanel) is coming over for dinner that night. Along with her mother (Juanita) and brother (Puci). Chanel will be going to Fashion Industries too. Galleria’s mom tells her to come help her play hostess but Galleria keeps working on her song “Welcome to the Glitterdome”.
Juanita’s supposed to be bringing her boyfriend from Paris for them to meet. Galleria greets Mr. Tycoon and tries to shake his hand but it seems he doesn’t do that. He’s goodlooking tho and he nods his approval of the place. Chanel rolls her eyes. Chanel and Galleria make their excuses to leave the room. Then they burst into giggles. Its like is he forreal. Galleria teases Chanel about being a princess. Chanel says she’s worried about her mom. She’s not even allowed to talk when he’s around. He doesn’t think children should talk in the presence of adults. But they aren’t children, Galleria reminds her. They’ll be starting high school tomorrow. Then they start talking about high school.
We learn that since the 7th grade, Bubbles and Chuchie have a secret pact that they’ll be a hot, successful, singing sensation. Galleria says she thinks they need to find some back up singers and have a girl group. Chuchie agrees. They day dream about all the things they’ll do when they make it. They agree to page later and get on chat. Later, Galleria and her mom talk about how weird Mr. Tycoon is. Her mother says Juanita is crazy about him so they just have to play along and hope she gets what she wants.
Chanel beeps Galleria but isn’t in the chat room. Instead, she starts to chat with a funny girl who says her name is Dorinda about what they’re wearing. Dorinda will be going to the same school and will be majoring in fashion design. Dorinda admits that she’s also a little nervous about starting high school. Then Chuchie signs in. Dorinda says she’s going to take dance classes. Chanel and Galleria say that take voice lessons at Drinka Champagnes. Dorinda says she thinks she can sing a little. She’ll show them tomorrow. Then they talk about clothes (They’ll wear leopard minis and different color turtlenecks) and where they live. They all decide to meet outside by the cafeteria. Galleria thinks Dorinda is cool and maybe she can hang with them.
Galleria gets heckled by a boy named Derek (Hambone) when the teacher pronounces her last name wrong. (He calls her Gari booty). But DUH (his initals) are shaved in the back of his head and he has on Johnny B Down clothes (which Galleria thinks are lame). He doesn’t realize it stands for DUH (Derek Ulysses Hambone). Galleria tells him to figure it out and he says I will and Galleria sees he likes her. Great!
Galleria tells Chuchie she has an idea for the Kats and Kitty’s Halloween bash. Galleria says they should throw it at the Cheetah-Rama where her mom goes dancing. Chanel tells that’s cool and by the way she ran into those girls from Houston in Soho-the twins at the 4rth of July bash (Aquanette and Angenette Walker). They’ll be coming to the meeting on Sunday. They go to LaGuardia. Chanel says that’s where they should have gone but Galleria reminds her she was too scared to audition. The twins it seems can sing and tear up some food.
They meet Dorinda. She’s tiny and pretty and looks about 12. Derek gives Galleria and Chanel the nickname “Cheetah Girls” when he passes them and says he’s still trying to figure it out. The Cheetah’s talk about Toto in New York Fun In Diva Sizes (Galleria’s mom’s boutique) and the tops they designed and sold at their lemonade stand. Also about how long Chanel and Dorinda have been friends and Juanita’s new book. They then hit up Mickey Dee’s and how they (Chanel and Galleria) need to come up. Dorinda tells them about her love of books.
Chanel asks how much allowance she gets. She says she works three nights a week at the YMCA. They talk about classes a little. Dorinda is into technology. Galleria shares the “Glitterdome” song with them. Chanel and Galleria start to harmonize and Dorinda joins in and they notice she can sing. They invite her to come to Drinka’s with them. Galleria comes up with the nickname “Do-Re-Mi” for Dorinda. Then Galleria invites her join to the Kats and Kitty’s Club. Only its 650.00 but they tell her don’t worry about it. Galleria tells her about their plans to form a girl group.
They find out Dorinda has 10 other siblings but they’re foster kids. They even teach her the secret handshake. Now all the need are a couple other singers. At the Pizza Pit, they run into the Walker twins. They talk about the upcoming events and the meeting. Angie says they came to go to LaGuardia. Aqua says they came up there because there’s no room in Houston for them and Karma’s Children. They talk some more and they find out that the twins came to live with their father because their mother sells Avon and he felt they weren’t being properly supervised.
Their dad was he senior vice president of marketing at Avon. He was thier mom's boss. That's why he moved there. One of the twins has hot sauce in her purse. The twins invite them to hear them sing at their church. They’re in the junior choir. They say even tho the gospel stuff is cool, they want to sing RNB. They agree to hang out and sing together. Galleria says they should sing at the Kats and Kittys upcoming bash and charge. Her mom can make their costumes. Galleria isn’t sure if she likes the twins but she knows than can SANG and she, Chanel, and Dorinda have the flava. They could do some serious damage. The twins promise they won’t try to take over.
They all meet to discus what song to sing at Chanel’s. Galleria slips in they should perform her songs. It turns out the twins only like Gospel singers. Dorinda like rap. Galleria and Chanel like girl groups. Aqua and Galleria start to argue. They fight for 2 hours and end on singing 2 songs from Kahlua. Galleria isn’t happy and plans to go to her mom because they ARE going to do atleast one of her songs. She’s been working on one called “Wanna Be Stars In the Jiggy Jungle”. Dorinda says she has to go. Galleria and Chanel are already working on getting her into Kats and Kittys and have gotten her a scholarship at Drinka’s.
Chanel and Galleria go to check out locations. Chanel wants to know who’s going to sing lead. Galleria says they will. But secretly she thinks she’ll be the only one singing lead on her songs. As they get to know Dorinda they find out her foster mother’s name is Mrs Bosco and she wants her to be a teacher. After Drinka’s, Do, Chuchie, and Bubbles meet up with Angie and Aqua and they head to Toto’s in NY. The twins meet Mrs. Doretha and are in awe of her. She tells them about how she named Galleria after the famous Galleria mall in Houston.
We find out the wins have guinea pigs named Porgy and Bess. Mrs. Dorotha suggests leopard catsuits, masks, and leopard boots. She says the spots worked for her and Josephine Baker, they’ll work for them (when they’re trying to think of a name). Do remembers that Derek called them the Cheetah Girls and Galleria decides she likes (no loves) it. She then gives them Cheetah backpacks and takes measurements to make their costumes. They’ll make Toto a costume too and he’ll be their mascot.
The twins finally agree to do Galleria’s new song. Only Angie and Aqua are singing to heavy and Do is singing too soft so the rehearsal goes badly. Galleria ends up screaming at Chanel and they end up fighting on the street. Chanel calls her a chocolate covered canoli and Galleria gets upset and goes home. Do runs after her but Galleria tells her she just needs to be by herself for now. She goes home, gets in bed, and eats some of her mom’s candy.
Chuchie comes up to her at school and asks if she still wants her to do her weave. Galleria tries to brush her off but she says she had a bad dream and tells her she feel on stage and she screamed but no one heard. Then the crowd starts to chase her. So, they hug it out. Galleria can’t believe she’s letting her off the hook but she IS her best friend. Chanel apologizes but says she did make her mad with a comment she made about her and a pinata to the twins. Galleria realizes just like her Chanel likes to show off in front of the twins.
During the performance, Dorinda splits her costume but the crowd loves them. They especially love Galleria’s song. They make a vow to stay together forever. The Cheetah Girls are introduced to Mr. Johnson -a producer-. He says he thought they’d just be cute but they have something different. He says they need a manager so they can get a record deal. He gives them his card and says they can set up a meeting for next week.
My Thoughts
So, before the Disney movie, was this book. And I remember when I first got Wishing on a Star at a mall in Atlanta, a very long time ago. Much like in the show's we've seen in the past trying to put a group together we see all the personality clashes and drama. But unlike in the tv-shows that show this week by week, we get it all straightened out in 9 chapters. Even the fight is short and isn't really much of a fight. If you can consider being called a chocolate covered cannoli an insult. Actually, that doesn't sound too bad to me. I guess it was more the context of how it was delivered.
I liked that the event in this was Halloween and the Cheetah Girls costumes sounded HOT! I wish I could say the same for the songs, which sounded a lot like fluff. But then if The Glitterdome and The Jiggy Jungle had slamming beats I have no doubt that they would have been hits like the book said. And back in the day if I would have heard them on the radio I probably would have been bobbing my head.
I found it amusing that the book used singers like Destiny's Child, Brandy, and the Spice Girls and tried to change the names. I could almost figure out all of who and what the songs were. Except "Don't Lox Me Out The Box?" The settings/stores and their names were fun and interesting such as "Unbeweavable” The Hatter's shop (where Miss Doretha has tea on Sunday's) (actually this reminded me of EAH's the Hatter's Habashary and tea shoppe), Dorothea’s shop (Toto's), and the Cheetah printed Kit's and Kat's club. It would have been so cool to have something like this back in the day growing up here. A club where young singers could come up and get their shot.
So, then we have the characters, Galleria, Channel, Dorinda, and Angie and Aqua. (Galleria) I didn't find nearly as bossy and arrogant as I was expecting having watched the movie umpteenth times. She just really seemed to want the chance to sing her songs. And I didn't find that a bad thing. If I were trying to make it in the singing industry and I had the talent (which it can be argued if Galleria's lyrics from what we've read are indeed marketable) than yes, I'd want the chance to sing my own material as well.
(Channel)l was honestly in this book kind of bland. Nothing really made her stand out to comment on. And on the Disney movie she's my favorite one!
Dorinda in the books (compared to the Disney version) I liked that right off the bat she didn't try to hide the fact that she was a foster child and wasn't ashamed of Mrs. Bosco and her 1o other siblings. Which I could never understand in the Disney version why she was embarrassed about that and thought the Cheetah Girls would call her out on it. The truth is always best upfront.
Last but not least we have the hot-sauce, twins, from the South (Angie and Aqua). I didn't see that as over-bearing and I didn't understand why Galleria took a dislike to them. To have the best voices of all the Cheetah Girls they weren't trying to stunt and push themselves in the front. Which is rare. They were content to be in the background. They tried to push their music but I don't think this was out of arrogance. Church music was just what they'd grown up on and was a part of them. It wasn't like they were trying to push their beliefs. It's just that I've found that "church people" like to strongly share. Bible verses, music, sermons, whatever have you. Not because their pushy just because they love it so intensely they want you to be into it just as hard as they are. There were a couple of other's Derrick and Mackereel. Derrick being the "love interest" but neither was given much depth.
Rating: 6 Although the plot was decent, the phrases in it were cheesy even for me. And some of them didn't make sense. "A mop" didn't the book describe that as someone that liked to come in and shop lift? The lyrics were cotton-candy. The settings were fun. But the characters I had to reach deep into my head to find something to comment on. Probably at the time when I bought this book it thought it was so great but this time around it was just so-so after watching the Disney movies which REALLY brought these books out! 10 x's over.
Tomorrow is Galleria’s first day of high school at Fashion Industries High and Galleria is painting her nails “Pow” (purple) to take her mind off her nerves. Her best friend (Chanel) is coming over for dinner that night. Along with her mother (Juanita) and brother (Puci). Chanel will be going to Fashion Industries too. Galleria’s mom tells her to come help her play hostess but Galleria keeps working on her song “Welcome to the Glitterdome”.
Juanita’s supposed to be bringing her boyfriend from Paris for them to meet. Galleria greets Mr. Tycoon and tries to shake his hand but it seems he doesn’t do that. He’s goodlooking tho and he nods his approval of the place. Chanel rolls her eyes. Chanel and Galleria make their excuses to leave the room. Then they burst into giggles. Its like is he forreal. Galleria teases Chanel about being a princess. Chanel says she’s worried about her mom. She’s not even allowed to talk when he’s around. He doesn’t think children should talk in the presence of adults. But they aren’t children, Galleria reminds her. They’ll be starting high school tomorrow. Then they start talking about high school.
We learn that since the 7th grade, Bubbles and Chuchie have a secret pact that they’ll be a hot, successful, singing sensation. Galleria says she thinks they need to find some back up singers and have a girl group. Chuchie agrees. They day dream about all the things they’ll do when they make it. They agree to page later and get on chat. Later, Galleria and her mom talk about how weird Mr. Tycoon is. Her mother says Juanita is crazy about him so they just have to play along and hope she gets what she wants.
Chanel beeps Galleria but isn’t in the chat room. Instead, she starts to chat with a funny girl who says her name is Dorinda about what they’re wearing. Dorinda will be going to the same school and will be majoring in fashion design. Dorinda admits that she’s also a little nervous about starting high school. Then Chuchie signs in. Dorinda says she’s going to take dance classes. Chanel and Galleria say that take voice lessons at Drinka Champagnes. Dorinda says she thinks she can sing a little. She’ll show them tomorrow. Then they talk about clothes (They’ll wear leopard minis and different color turtlenecks) and where they live. They all decide to meet outside by the cafeteria. Galleria thinks Dorinda is cool and maybe she can hang with them.
Galleria gets heckled by a boy named Derek (Hambone) when the teacher pronounces her last name wrong. (He calls her Gari booty). But DUH (his initals) are shaved in the back of his head and he has on Johnny B Down clothes (which Galleria thinks are lame). He doesn’t realize it stands for DUH (Derek Ulysses Hambone). Galleria tells him to figure it out and he says I will and Galleria sees he likes her. Great!
Galleria tells Chuchie she has an idea for the Kats and Kitty’s Halloween bash. Galleria says they should throw it at the Cheetah-Rama where her mom goes dancing. Chanel tells that’s cool and by the way she ran into those girls from Houston in Soho-the twins at the 4rth of July bash (Aquanette and Angenette Walker). They’ll be coming to the meeting on Sunday. They go to LaGuardia. Chanel says that’s where they should have gone but Galleria reminds her she was too scared to audition. The twins it seems can sing and tear up some food.
They meet Dorinda. She’s tiny and pretty and looks about 12. Derek gives Galleria and Chanel the nickname “Cheetah Girls” when he passes them and says he’s still trying to figure it out. The Cheetah’s talk about Toto in New York Fun In Diva Sizes (Galleria’s mom’s boutique) and the tops they designed and sold at their lemonade stand. Also about how long Chanel and Dorinda have been friends and Juanita’s new book. They then hit up Mickey Dee’s and how they (Chanel and Galleria) need to come up. Dorinda tells them about her love of books.
Chanel asks how much allowance she gets. She says she works three nights a week at the YMCA. They talk about classes a little. Dorinda is into technology. Galleria shares the “Glitterdome” song with them. Chanel and Galleria start to harmonize and Dorinda joins in and they notice she can sing. They invite her to come to Drinka’s with them. Galleria comes up with the nickname “Do-Re-Mi” for Dorinda. Then Galleria invites her join to the Kats and Kitty’s Club. Only its 650.00 but they tell her don’t worry about it. Galleria tells her about their plans to form a girl group.
They find out Dorinda has 10 other siblings but they’re foster kids. They even teach her the secret handshake. Now all the need are a couple other singers. At the Pizza Pit, they run into the Walker twins. They talk about the upcoming events and the meeting. Angie says they came to go to LaGuardia. Aqua says they came up there because there’s no room in Houston for them and Karma’s Children. They talk some more and they find out that the twins came to live with their father because their mother sells Avon and he felt they weren’t being properly supervised.
Their dad was he senior vice president of marketing at Avon. He was thier mom's boss. That's why he moved there. One of the twins has hot sauce in her purse. The twins invite them to hear them sing at their church. They’re in the junior choir. They say even tho the gospel stuff is cool, they want to sing RNB. They agree to hang out and sing together. Galleria says they should sing at the Kats and Kittys upcoming bash and charge. Her mom can make their costumes. Galleria isn’t sure if she likes the twins but she knows than can SANG and she, Chanel, and Dorinda have the flava. They could do some serious damage. The twins promise they won’t try to take over.
They all meet to discus what song to sing at Chanel’s. Galleria slips in they should perform her songs. It turns out the twins only like Gospel singers. Dorinda like rap. Galleria and Chanel like girl groups. Aqua and Galleria start to argue. They fight for 2 hours and end on singing 2 songs from Kahlua. Galleria isn’t happy and plans to go to her mom because they ARE going to do atleast one of her songs. She’s been working on one called “Wanna Be Stars In the Jiggy Jungle”. Dorinda says she has to go. Galleria and Chanel are already working on getting her into Kats and Kittys and have gotten her a scholarship at Drinka’s.
Chanel and Galleria go to check out locations. Chanel wants to know who’s going to sing lead. Galleria says they will. But secretly she thinks she’ll be the only one singing lead on her songs. As they get to know Dorinda they find out her foster mother’s name is Mrs Bosco and she wants her to be a teacher. After Drinka’s, Do, Chuchie, and Bubbles meet up with Angie and Aqua and they head to Toto’s in NY. The twins meet Mrs. Doretha and are in awe of her. She tells them about how she named Galleria after the famous Galleria mall in Houston.
We find out the wins have guinea pigs named Porgy and Bess. Mrs. Dorotha suggests leopard catsuits, masks, and leopard boots. She says the spots worked for her and Josephine Baker, they’ll work for them (when they’re trying to think of a name). Do remembers that Derek called them the Cheetah Girls and Galleria decides she likes (no loves) it. She then gives them Cheetah backpacks and takes measurements to make their costumes. They’ll make Toto a costume too and he’ll be their mascot.
The twins finally agree to do Galleria’s new song. Only Angie and Aqua are singing to heavy and Do is singing too soft so the rehearsal goes badly. Galleria ends up screaming at Chanel and they end up fighting on the street. Chanel calls her a chocolate covered canoli and Galleria gets upset and goes home. Do runs after her but Galleria tells her she just needs to be by herself for now. She goes home, gets in bed, and eats some of her mom’s candy.
Chuchie comes up to her at school and asks if she still wants her to do her weave. Galleria tries to brush her off but she says she had a bad dream and tells her she feel on stage and she screamed but no one heard. Then the crowd starts to chase her. So, they hug it out. Galleria can’t believe she’s letting her off the hook but she IS her best friend. Chanel apologizes but says she did make her mad with a comment she made about her and a pinata to the twins. Galleria realizes just like her Chanel likes to show off in front of the twins.
During the performance, Dorinda splits her costume but the crowd loves them. They especially love Galleria’s song. They make a vow to stay together forever. The Cheetah Girls are introduced to Mr. Johnson -a producer-. He says he thought they’d just be cute but they have something different. He says they need a manager so they can get a record deal. He gives them his card and says they can set up a meeting for next week.
My Thoughts
So, before the Disney movie, was this book. And I remember when I first got Wishing on a Star at a mall in Atlanta, a very long time ago. Much like in the show's we've seen in the past trying to put a group together we see all the personality clashes and drama. But unlike in the tv-shows that show this week by week, we get it all straightened out in 9 chapters. Even the fight is short and isn't really much of a fight. If you can consider being called a chocolate covered cannoli an insult. Actually, that doesn't sound too bad to me. I guess it was more the context of how it was delivered.
I liked that the event in this was Halloween and the Cheetah Girls costumes sounded HOT! I wish I could say the same for the songs, which sounded a lot like fluff. But then if The Glitterdome and The Jiggy Jungle had slamming beats I have no doubt that they would have been hits like the book said. And back in the day if I would have heard them on the radio I probably would have been bobbing my head.
I found it amusing that the book used singers like Destiny's Child, Brandy, and the Spice Girls and tried to change the names. I could almost figure out all of who and what the songs were. Except "Don't Lox Me Out The Box?" The settings/stores and their names were fun and interesting such as "Unbeweavable” The Hatter's shop (where Miss Doretha has tea on Sunday's) (actually this reminded me of EAH's the Hatter's Habashary and tea shoppe), Dorothea’s shop (Toto's), and the Cheetah printed Kit's and Kat's club. It would have been so cool to have something like this back in the day growing up here. A club where young singers could come up and get their shot.
So, then we have the characters, Galleria, Channel, Dorinda, and Angie and Aqua. (Galleria) I didn't find nearly as bossy and arrogant as I was expecting having watched the movie umpteenth times. She just really seemed to want the chance to sing her songs. And I didn't find that a bad thing. If I were trying to make it in the singing industry and I had the talent (which it can be argued if Galleria's lyrics from what we've read are indeed marketable) than yes, I'd want the chance to sing my own material as well.
(Channel)l was honestly in this book kind of bland. Nothing really made her stand out to comment on. And on the Disney movie she's my favorite one!
Dorinda in the books (compared to the Disney version) I liked that right off the bat she didn't try to hide the fact that she was a foster child and wasn't ashamed of Mrs. Bosco and her 1o other siblings. Which I could never understand in the Disney version why she was embarrassed about that and thought the Cheetah Girls would call her out on it. The truth is always best upfront.
Last but not least we have the hot-sauce, twins, from the South (Angie and Aqua). I didn't see that as over-bearing and I didn't understand why Galleria took a dislike to them. To have the best voices of all the Cheetah Girls they weren't trying to stunt and push themselves in the front. Which is rare. They were content to be in the background. They tried to push their music but I don't think this was out of arrogance. Church music was just what they'd grown up on and was a part of them. It wasn't like they were trying to push their beliefs. It's just that I've found that "church people" like to strongly share. Bible verses, music, sermons, whatever have you. Not because their pushy just because they love it so intensely they want you to be into it just as hard as they are. There were a couple of other's Derrick and Mackereel. Derrick being the "love interest" but neither was given much depth.
Rating: 6 Although the plot was decent, the phrases in it were cheesy even for me. And some of them didn't make sense. "A mop" didn't the book describe that as someone that liked to come in and shop lift? The lyrics were cotton-candy. The settings were fun. But the characters I had to reach deep into my head to find something to comment on. Probably at the time when I bought this book it thought it was so great but this time around it was just so-so after watching the Disney movies which REALLY brought these books out! 10 x's over.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
April 28, 2025
This is my first time reading a book written by author Deborah Gregory. I had watched The Cheetah Girls (a Disney Channel Original Movie), so I was excited to read "Wishing on a Star (The Cheetah Girls #1)."
This story is told from Galleria's point of view. She believes and acts like she is the leader of The Cheetah Girls. (Fun fact: Galleria is named after a shopping mall in Texas: The Galleria.)
I loved seeing the relationship Galleria has with her family, with her friends and with her dog, Toto (displayed in the book and the movie). There is certainly my-life-is-over teenage drama!
There are so many nicknames to keep track of like Chuchie, Chanel No. 5, Bubbles and Do' Re Mi (even more secret nicknames in the book). They do the secret Cheetah handshake (and in the book, take a Cheetah Girls oath).
------------------------------------------------
There were a few similarities to the book and the movie:
*Movie Line: Oh, no, I wear Prada or nada. Mama.
*Book Quote: "Prada or Nada, that's my motto for life!" (pg. 16).
*Book Quote: (From The Cheetah Girls Credo): "All Cheetah Girls are created equal, but we are not alike. We come in different sizes, shapes and colors and hail from different cultures. I will not judge others by the color of their spots, but by their character."
*Movie Line: (lyrics to the song, "Cheetah Sisters"):
♫ ♪ We make up one big family / Though, we don't look the same / Our spots are different, different colors / We make each other stronger/ That ain't ever gonna change / We're Cheetah Girls, Cheetah Sisters ♫ ♪
*Book Quote: (From The Cheetah Girls Credo): A true Cheetah girl doesn't spend more time doing her hair than her homework.
*Movie Line: I get good grades. I spend more time on my homework than I do my hair.
*From the Book: The Garibaldi family favorite movie is: The Wizard of Oz.
*Movie Line: Well, I don't even think The Wizard of Oz can fix this, Mom.
Other similarities:
Juanita (Chanel's mom) is dating Mr. Tycoon. Juanita and Dorothea (Galleria's mom) used to be models. Gabriella's dad is Italian. Dorinda is a foster child, works at the YMCA and is the best dancer in the group. Galleria writes songs and shares them with Chanel. The Texas girl carries hot sauce in her purse.
------------------------------------------------
There are quite a few differences! Essentially the movie storyline and the book storyline are completely different!
Drinka and Derek and Mackerel are in the movie and the book, though they play very different characters. In the book, Derek is the one who comes up with the name "Cheetah Girl", teasing Galleria (pg. 38).
Galleria and Chanel attend Fashion Industries High School together. They are looking for backup singers to form a girl group.
Chanel says she'll page Galleria, and they'll log into a chat room (pg. 17-18) and online is where they meet Dorinda (pg. 23) who coincidentally attends the same school. Aquanette and Anginette Walker are twins from Texas with southern accents who go to a separate school but hang out in the same circles. The twins are supposedly the best singers in the group.
These five think of a name for their group, come up with songs to sing and decide outfit choices. They perform (and get paid) at the Kats and Kittys Halloween Bash where they wear cat suit costumes with tails and leopard masks. The girls meet Jackal Johnson at the end of the story who is impressed with their performance and want to sign them for a record deal.
* The songs are different in the movie and the book
* Biggest difference: There are 5 Cheetah girls in the book and not 4.
* Also, a big difference:
In the book, Dorinda Rogers is "the same color as Chanel - kinda like mochachino - and her hair is cornrowed in the front" (pg. 37).
In the movie: Dorinda Thomas (different last name) is Caucasian.
------------------------------------------------
The book was published in 1999, and I love the time-period references and sayings, like:
"No diggity, no doubt" (pg. 25)
The Whacky Babies - a reference to the Beanie Babies
ordering from Mikki D (pg. 42) - best known to us as McyD's
May the Force be with you (pg. 114)
and many more!
Aside from the story, the author includes:
* The Cheetah Girls Credo
* Lyrics to the song: "Wanna-be Stars in the Jiggy Jungle"
* The Cheetah Girls Glossary
"We would follow the Yellow Brick Road until we were independent and on our own - and, yes, had money of our own in our cheetah purses. We are never gonna work at Mikki D's" (pg. 114-115).
Is the Book about The Cheetah Girls better than the Movie version?
Find out on my Blog Series titled: Book Vs Movie ->
https://www.sunshinerodgers.com/movie...
This story is told from Galleria's point of view. She believes and acts like she is the leader of The Cheetah Girls. (Fun fact: Galleria is named after a shopping mall in Texas: The Galleria.)
I loved seeing the relationship Galleria has with her family, with her friends and with her dog, Toto (displayed in the book and the movie). There is certainly my-life-is-over teenage drama!
There are so many nicknames to keep track of like Chuchie, Chanel No. 5, Bubbles and Do' Re Mi (even more secret nicknames in the book). They do the secret Cheetah handshake (and in the book, take a Cheetah Girls oath).
------------------------------------------------
There were a few similarities to the book and the movie:
*Movie Line: Oh, no, I wear Prada or nada. Mama.
*Book Quote: "Prada or Nada, that's my motto for life!" (pg. 16).
*Book Quote: (From The Cheetah Girls Credo): "All Cheetah Girls are created equal, but we are not alike. We come in different sizes, shapes and colors and hail from different cultures. I will not judge others by the color of their spots, but by their character."
*Movie Line: (lyrics to the song, "Cheetah Sisters"):
♫ ♪ We make up one big family / Though, we don't look the same / Our spots are different, different colors / We make each other stronger/ That ain't ever gonna change / We're Cheetah Girls, Cheetah Sisters ♫ ♪
*Book Quote: (From The Cheetah Girls Credo): A true Cheetah girl doesn't spend more time doing her hair than her homework.
*Movie Line: I get good grades. I spend more time on my homework than I do my hair.
*From the Book: The Garibaldi family favorite movie is: The Wizard of Oz.
*Movie Line: Well, I don't even think The Wizard of Oz can fix this, Mom.
Other similarities:
Juanita (Chanel's mom) is dating Mr. Tycoon. Juanita and Dorothea (Galleria's mom) used to be models. Gabriella's dad is Italian. Dorinda is a foster child, works at the YMCA and is the best dancer in the group. Galleria writes songs and shares them with Chanel. The Texas girl carries hot sauce in her purse.
------------------------------------------------
There are quite a few differences! Essentially the movie storyline and the book storyline are completely different!
Drinka and Derek and Mackerel are in the movie and the book, though they play very different characters. In the book, Derek is the one who comes up with the name "Cheetah Girl", teasing Galleria (pg. 38).
Galleria and Chanel attend Fashion Industries High School together. They are looking for backup singers to form a girl group.
Chanel says she'll page Galleria, and they'll log into a chat room (pg. 17-18) and online is where they meet Dorinda (pg. 23) who coincidentally attends the same school. Aquanette and Anginette Walker are twins from Texas with southern accents who go to a separate school but hang out in the same circles. The twins are supposedly the best singers in the group.
These five think of a name for their group, come up with songs to sing and decide outfit choices. They perform (and get paid) at the Kats and Kittys Halloween Bash where they wear cat suit costumes with tails and leopard masks. The girls meet Jackal Johnson at the end of the story who is impressed with their performance and want to sign them for a record deal.
* The songs are different in the movie and the book
* Biggest difference: There are 5 Cheetah girls in the book and not 4.
* Also, a big difference:
In the book, Dorinda Rogers is "the same color as Chanel - kinda like mochachino - and her hair is cornrowed in the front" (pg. 37).
In the movie: Dorinda Thomas (different last name) is Caucasian.
------------------------------------------------
The book was published in 1999, and I love the time-period references and sayings, like:
"No diggity, no doubt" (pg. 25)
The Whacky Babies - a reference to the Beanie Babies
ordering from Mikki D (pg. 42) - best known to us as McyD's
May the Force be with you (pg. 114)
and many more!
Aside from the story, the author includes:
* The Cheetah Girls Credo
* Lyrics to the song: "Wanna-be Stars in the Jiggy Jungle"
* The Cheetah Girls Glossary
"We would follow the Yellow Brick Road until we were independent and on our own - and, yes, had money of our own in our cheetah purses. We are never gonna work at Mikki D's" (pg. 114-115).
Is the Book about The Cheetah Girls better than the Movie version?
Find out on my Blog Series titled: Book Vs Movie ->
https://www.sunshinerodgers.com/movie...
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Read
February 26, 2023I’m going to read the entire series but I don’t think I’ll be rating these books as they’re intended for a much younger audience. I love the premise of an all Black girl group who look up to other black groups of their time who all go to fashion or performance arts schools with a natural love for performing and come from different backgrounds. This book was published in 1994 so of course it’s dated a bit and some things do come off as offensive like the remarks Chanel and Galleria made towards each other. I like how although this was written in the 90s Deborah celebrated the fact that Dorothea is a plus sized woman and she has her own plus sized fashion line with “diva” sizes. It's very sweet how much Galleria looks up to her mother so much of her identity is wrapped up into cheetah and leopard print which she got from her mom and the fact that she puts ruby red slipper stickers on everything because her mother loves The Wizard of Oz is so sweet. It's also sweet that she wants to buy her mom the slippers from the movie one day. I don't think it would be right of me to be too critical of the way the girls act, seeing as they're 13-14-year-olds who come from money it's very realistic that they can come off as mean, controlling, and garner jealousy and resentment towards random girls for no reason. I really love Dorinda's character. She's very responsible for her age, hardworking, and sweet towards everyone. No matter how hard it gets she'd rather cry alone than worry others and even when she doesn't have money in her pockets she'll pay for her friends expecting nothing back. I like the twins Aqua and Angie as well but I do wish we got to discover more of their personalities in this book, especially Angie. One thing I don't like is the way the twins were treated from the jump. It seems like just because Chanel and Galleria lack the talent the twins have they think the twins are always showing off when they're merely showcasing their talents. They're always so nice-nasty towards them and ready to pounce and if the twins defend themselves they get upset. You can tell Galleria isn't used to people disagreeing with her. I would've loved for them to build a friendship on a good note instead of animosity. I hope they grow a genuine bond in the next book. I love that the twins and Dorinda already get along so well and share recipes with each other. I surprisingly don't have a lot to say about Chanel as of right now.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
March 11, 2023
gotta say, my personality for a while as a kid was the cheetah girls (chuchie was my fav), but i didn’t know the movies were based on a book series written by a black woman and that all the girls were black. very on brand for disney to change that aspect. anyway the book is extremely cheesy, cutesy, and very young. (the characters are 14-year-old high school freshman, but it reads more like early middle school.) there are some questionable lines, repeated lines or information, and punctuation missing or misplaced. all in all, for a book that’s only 80 pages, it was hard to get through.
September 21, 2025
I re-read this purely based off nostalgia. It's definitely a product of its time, but it was nice to go down memory lane. I loved the Cheetah Girls books when I was a little girl and used to wait for my library to get the new books in stock so I could check them out. As an adult now, I probably won't be continuing my re-read of the entire series. I want to keep my good childhood memories untainted by my adult knowledge of what good writing is lol.
December 31, 2025
This book was very nostalgic for me, i grew up loving the cheetah girls and I still do now at my big age😂 I always wanted to read them as a kid so i thought why not.. i did enjoy this book but you have to keep in mind the times, lol i think this book was made in 1999 and you can tell. This was a cute little book and I noticed how they kept a lot of the stuff that’s in the book in the movie so i loved that. Thank God they changed the songs up a little though because😭
April 25, 2024
The Cheetah Girls raised me! So me reading the books is a full circle and I couldn’t be happier.
It’s WAY too different from the movie adaptation. We have twins! TWINS. That everyone seems to dislike LMAO
It’s such a fun and quick read, I’m obsessed with it already. The words and terms are so 2000’s coded I am living.
It’s WAY too different from the movie adaptation. We have twins! TWINS. That everyone seems to dislike LMAO
It’s such a fun and quick read, I’m obsessed with it already. The words and terms are so 2000’s coded I am living.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
August 18, 2024
After buying this book when I was 10, I'm finally getting around to reading it at 30. This read REALLY young, and there's so much lingo it makes it a bit jarring. Maybe if I was closer to the target audience I would've liked it more.
I bought the omnibus (books 1-4) when I was in 5th grade because of the Disney movie. Disney sure toned it down.
I bought the omnibus (books 1-4) when I was in 5th grade because of the Disney movie. Disney sure toned it down.
January 20, 2018
Very cute, but also very girly and dated. It's very much a blast-from-the-past kind of book.
July 9, 2021
HAD to re-read purely for the nostalgia and excessive camp dripping throughout these pages
August 6, 2022
wow super short! I read as ebook, def. thought this would bring back memories but honestly super annoying and a bit def. in it time!
February 8, 2023
i swear this was like reading a different language
October 19, 2024
Thought it was going to be more like the Disney movie and it was disappointing
April 11, 2023
The Cheetah Girls is a book series created by Deborah Gregory that centers around four girls: Galleria, Chanel, Dorinda, Aquanette and Aginette who form the girl group "the Cheetah Girls."
The first two books were adapted into the mega popular Dsney Channel Original Movie "The Cheetah Girls".
Early on in the first book, the reader can tell the audience is geared toward middle schoolers.
The teen slang in the book is creative and unique with phrases such as "growl power", "major domo dope", and "divette-in-training" however other phrases like "jiggy juggle" and "no diggety"
seem outdated making the book dated instead of timeless.
An all-black female group like Destiny's Child is a great concept.
I would recommend this book to people who are curious about the source inspiration for the Cheetah Girls group.
The first two books were adapted into the mega popular Dsney Channel Original Movie "The Cheetah Girls".
Early on in the first book, the reader can tell the audience is geared toward middle schoolers.
The teen slang in the book is creative and unique with phrases such as "growl power", "major domo dope", and "divette-in-training" however other phrases like "jiggy juggle" and "no diggety"
seem outdated making the book dated instead of timeless.
An all-black female group like Destiny's Child is a great concept.
I would recommend this book to people who are curious about the source inspiration for the Cheetah Girls group.
February 7, 2008
I read this aloud (at least the first chapter or so) to a small audience in 6th grade when it's owner (*cough* Sarah *cough*) wasn't there.... it was hilarious
September 22, 2009
fantastic book!
Displaying 1 - 26 of 26 reviews