By Colorado Kids Advisory Board member Zoe Yabrove

Title: The Cheetah Girls: Supa-Dupa Sparkle Books 5-8
Author: Deborah Gregory
Publisher: Jump at the Sun
Number of Pages: 609

You might think that if you've seen the Disney Channel movie, The Cheetah Girls, that you don't need to read the book. But think again! The book is so much better!

The story is about a group of girls, Galleria, Chanel, Dorinda, Anginette, and Aquanette, who have a dream to sing. Their adventure begins when they get noticed at a simple, local talent show. They get asked to go to a showcase in California. The girls travel with Galleria's mom who is also their agent. These girls show courage and confidence when they have to sing in front of a huge crowd. On their trip, they meet up with rivals from their hometown, two brothers in a group called Stak Chedda These brothers beat them in the local competition and now the girls must face them again in a bigger challenge.

One of my favorite things about the story is the language. In fact, the author includes a glossary just to help you out with the terms. My friends and I had a lot of fun with the cool, funny sayings. One of my favorites was goospitating which meant nervous. The girls don't actually call California, California. Instead they refer to it as La La Land or Cali. And Manhattan is Manny-hanny. "Oh, that's fabbie-poo, darling" means beyond fabulous! Calling something fugly means it's beyond ugly! There's a glossary at the end of each of the four books. They are almost as much fun to read as the story itself!

Another thing I like about the story is the nicknames they have for everyone. They call each other sisterella and girlina. Galleria's mom is mamacita. Dorinda is Do-Re-Mi. Chanel is Chuchie, They hardly call anybody by their real name!

One thing I didn't like about the book was that it was four books bound together as one. It was a little overwhelming presented this way. It would have been easier for me to have these books separated.

I would definitely recommend these books for my friends to read. I think they are most appealing to 10- 13 year old girls. But I think boys might enjoy the books too because they are very funny. I think if you like the Cheetah Girls books, you would also like The Amazing Days of Abby Hayes. Those are books about a girl with a dream of being a soccer player. (March, 2004)