The Bragging War (The Fabulous Five #5)
Grade 5-7-- Beth Barry's plan to outbrag rival Laura McCall backfires when Laura and friends appear at Beth's house and expose her fake slumber party. Beth and Laura continue to try to outdo each other, flanked by the usual adolescent concerns about boyfriends, zits, and the social pecking order. When Laura flaunts front row tickets to a rock concert, Beth gains the attention of the star (having heard that he is interested in native Americans) by dressing up as a Cherokee Indian. She sneaks into his hotel and knocks on his door. He not only buys her disguise and invites her in, but he also calls her whole group onto the stage to sing with him at the end of the concert, and Beth is fantastically rewarded for continuing to scheme and plot revenge. Although fans of the Fabulous Five will gobble this right up, the contrived ending and Beth's failure to grow out of petty bragging battles or learn anything positive from her failures make this less appealing than Haynes' usual offerings. --Candy Colborn, Cottonwood Creek Elementary School, Englewood, Colo.Copyright 1989 Reed Business Information, Inc.