Nielson, Susin. Dear George Clooney, Please Marry My Mom.

Nielson, Susin.   Dear George Clooney, Please Marry My Mom. Tundra Books  240p      $10.95      978-1-77049-295-0       ms/hs   VG-BN     Realistic fiction

Violet’s parents are divorced.  Her father is a Hollywood producer who is remarried to a blonde starlet and living upscale; her mother is working as a hairstylist in Vancouver and living in a run-down house.  Violet bitterly resents her father’s new family and is appalled by her mother’s choices of boyfriends.  The latest is, most unfortunately, named Dudley Wiener.  Violet must deal with her dysfunctional life in the best way that she can, but her anger and unhappiness tend to overwhelm her.  When she visits her father in Los Angeles again, she dreams up a wonderful scheme.  The next time that she accompanies her father to his television set in a major studio, she plans to find George Clooney and ask him to marry her mother.

Nielsen has written a book filled with strong, unforgettable characters, an interesting plot, realistic descriptions of a split family and, of course, a romantic interest.  Told as a first-person narrative, Violet’s story will both tug at the readers’ heartstrings and make them laugh aloud.  She is a most appealing character with real problems, and her attempts to solve them and reconcile her feelings for both her families make for compelling reading.    What more could anyone want?  This is sure to be a hit in the middle-school library.  It is highly recommended.

Divorce–Fiction, Families-Fiction                                -- Susan Ogintz