Book Review: Airhead by Meg Cabot

Cabot, Meg. Airhead. New York: Scholastic, 2008.

"It's time to stop messing around. Who did this to you, Nikki? And be honest. Was it Al Qaeda?"

"Brandon!" Lulu shrieked from the kitchen.

"Well." Brandon shook his head. "If they want to strike a blow against freedom, why not go after the Face of Stark, one of America's most beloved models?"

"Al Qaeda doesn't know how to give people AMNESIA," Lulu declared, from behind the black granite-topped island. "Only the Scientologists have the technology to do that."

Brandon looked at me gravely. "Was it the Scientologists, Nikki?" he asked.

Em Watts is smart, funny, and...invisible. The only person who seems to even care that she exists is her best (and very cute) friend, Christopher. And even then, it's like she's nothing more than a fellow video gamer.

But then Em Watts is killed in a freak accident. When she wakes up again, she's no longer in her own body, but in that of supermodel Nikki Howard, surrounded by celebrities, rivals, round-the-clock paprazzi, and a boss who isn't above murdering his employees to get what he wants.

Suddenly, being invisible is the best lifestyle she could possibly imagine.

Took a little while to get going, but once it did, WOW! I loved the premise. I couldn’t put it down. It ends on a cliffhanger, so we have to wait for the next installment to get any satisfaction. Girls will love the fashion and the romance and the concept that someday they could wake up and be the most beautiful girl in the world.

One of my favorite aspects about it is the way she deals with popularity and beauty. Beauty, surprisingly, isn't looked down on. It's also not glamorized as the end-all be-all. It's an added bonus to a strong, bright protagonist. How much harder would it be to discover one's inner self-worth when the world judges you exclusively on your appearance? Once again, Meg Cabot has taken chick lit to a new level, and proved that you can have comedic romance with substance.

Buy this book now!