Product Description

At last, Mia is a junior. An upperclassperson. Free of her responsibilities as student body president. So why is it that everything is going so terribly wrong? What is she doing in Intro to Creative Writing? When she has made it through Algebra and Geometry, why must she be faced with Precalculus? And for the love of all that is Genovian, why has Lilly nominated her for school prez again? All this is nothing compared to the news Michael springs on her, however. On top of all the mathematical strife, her beloved boyfriend is leaving for Japan for a year. Precalc has nothing on preparing for the worst separation ever!

Turns out there is one way she might convince Michael to stay. But will she? Or won't she? No matter what, Mia seems headed for disaster.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #460789 in Books
• Published on: 2007-01-01
• Released on: 2006-12-26
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Hardcover
• 256 pages

Features

• ISBN13: 9780060724566
• Condition: NEW
• Notes: Brand New from Publisher. No Remainder Mark.
• Click here to view our Condition Guide and Shipping Prices

From Booklist
Princess Mia, now a high-school junior, is reeling after her boyfriend, Michael, announces that he is heading to Japan for a year. If they have sex, will he stay? "To use sex as a means to manipulate someone" goes against Mia's principles, but she considers it anyway. Predictably, surprises and misunderstandings disrupt her plans, and Grandmere is salty and as controversial as ever: "Virginity is no GIFT. You can't even WEAR it." Series fans will enjoy the usual comedy and the larger questions about sex and relationships. Gillian Engberg
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

About the Author

Meg Cabot was born in Bloomington, Indiana. In addition to writing adult contemporary fiction, she is the author of the bestselling young adult fiction series The Princess Diaries. She lives in Key West, Florida, with her husband.

Customer Reviews

Entertaining but delivers a bad message
I've enjoyed every book in this series so far and will continue to read to the end, but this book changed my mind about ever sharing this series with my daughters. Mia is as sweet, innocent and neurotic as ever. In this book she acknowledges a bit more selfishness than usual (she hopes to prevent Michael from pursuing the development of his life-saving invention since it would entail him moving to Japan for over a year) but, considering her young age (16) and her general insecurity this is forgivable. What appalled me was not any diminishment in the quality of writing but in the attitude toward sexual relationships that is revealed in this episode.

Mia's attitude has been that sex is something special, to be shared with someone you love. Sex for the first time - losing your virginity - is especially important to her. She wants it to be not only to the person who will hopefully be her life-long love, but she wants the event, itself, to be extra-special. NOTE: even romantic Mia thinks saving oneself for marriage is ridiculous. Her idea of a "special" night goes no further than the Prom.

The response to this attitude from most of her friends, her boyfriend and every responsible adult in this story (and even Grandmere) is that Mia's attitude is wrong. It is, at best, a sign of her immaturity and at worse a "judgmental" attitude that is crazy and that puts into jeopardy an otherwise healthy, happy, potentially life-long romance.

[Spoiler Alert]

It turns out that Mia's boyfriend, Michael, lost his virginity before he even started dating Mia (2 years before this episode). He lost it to a girl whom he told Mia he was not even dating. He insists this wasn't a lie since he and this other girl weren't going out, they were only having sex. They had no special feelings for each other at all and, in fact, the other girl had a boyfriend (not Michal) at the time. Michael sees nothing at all wrong with this and can't understand why Mia gets upset. It turns out that no one else in Mia's world - especially not the "wise" adults she turns to for advice - see anything much wrong with Michael's attitude - only with Mia's. It is clear by the end of this book (which leaves you on a hook, awaiting the next book) that Mia's "foolish, juvenile" romanticism has possibly destroyed this important and, supposedly, healthy love relationship in her young life.

What is never asked is this: has Michael really been faithful to Mia all these years? Mia still assumes he has but, given Michael's cavalier attitude toward sex and the fact that he saw nothing wrong with his first girl cheating on her boyfriend to do him, she actually has no reason to trust him. She doesn't think to ask and it is clear he won't tell if not asked directly with every possible word of the question clearly defined. Would Michael even think he had done anything wrong if he had cheated on Mia, as long as he didn't fall in love with anyone else while they were dating? Furthermore, given their upcoming separation (with him moving to Japan for over a year) is there any reason at all for him to even consider staying faithful to her, even if they remain "a couple" over the distance?

Instead of asking these legitimate questions, the conflict evolves to encourage the reader to want Mia to throw off her juvenile fantasies and beg Michael's forgiveness for her overreaction to his expression of reasonable, modern attitudes. After all, he has done more than enough by being patient with her silly values all these years. Isn't it time she grew up?

Personally, I find myself regretting that these books are so well-written and enjoyable. Two generations of Americans have already suffered much unhappiness directly traceable to the attitudes and morals encouraged by this book. I would hate to see a third generation encouraged to repeat the same disastrous mistakes.

Princess on the Brink....of Disaster!
With the 8th in the Princess Diaries series, Meg Cabot gives Mia much more complex problems to deal with than in her previous installments. Mia, fresh from a summer in Genovia, arrives at school a junior, ready to face a new year, put student government behind her, and continue her romance with Michael. Oh, if only life could go as planned! First and foremost, Michael hits Mia with the news that he's going to Japan for a year to work on a surgical robotic arm he's invented; while Mia understands this is good news for Michael, she's devastated at the thought of not seeing him for an entire year. Then she finds out that Lily intends for her to continue in her role as President of the student government, and she's enrolled in both precalculus and chemistry, neither of which she understands. What else can go wrong? Well, how about Michael admitting that it will be a good thing for him to go to Japan because of what he and Mia are not doing....having sex. What's a princess to do? Mia hatches a plan to keep Michael in the States; will it succeed or is she doomed to a year of loneliness?

This installment has themes which are more grown-up than the previous ones; Mia's uncertainty about giving away her "Precious Gift" (which, like Michael, made me nuts every time I read those words) and her decision to try to manipulate Michael into staying put this one on a different level. This one is full of teenage angst and emotional outbursts that will undoubtedly disturb some readers but adds to the reality of the situations (such as they are). Once again, I found myself irritated with Lilly and wondering why on earth Mia puts up with her, and I found myself enjoying Tina's antics and also getting to know J.P. Cabot leaves us on a major cliffhanger that will have us all running for the bookstore the minute the next in the series is released. Overall, this book, while set in a very compressed amount of time, packs a wallop and is fast reading. I wouldn't precisely say it was a fun read, simply because the subject matter, while vintage Mia, is definitely more mature and heart-wrenching. If at times you want to strangle Mia, rest assured that you're not alone. Recommended as a worthy installment in the series!

Princess Does Something Different
In the latest installment, Princess on the Brink, we skip ahead to the beginning of Mia's junior year where things are looking up for her... that is, until they come crashing down. Not only does Mia have to deal with student body government again and suffer through another one of Mrs. Martinez's "biased" English classes, but she's got to contend with even harder math and science classes, and to make it even worse -- Michael's leaving for Japan!

Top this off with Mia finally coming to a decision on the S-E-X issue (with rather disastrous results), JP showing us more than ever where his true intentions lie, and a Grandmere who is even more demanding and entertaining than ever -- and you have one unforgettable addition to your Princess Diaries collection.

I really, truly enjoyed reading Princess on the Brink, but I've noticed that a lot of people are voicing their disappointment with its cliffhanger ending and Mia's unresolved problems with Michael. However, it is precisely those things that make this one of the best and most memorable Princess Diaries books to date. Meg Cabot breaks away from her typical "Mia has a problem, Mia frets, Mia's problem is resolved by the end of the book" formula. In this volume, Mia doesn't have the perfect plan to fix everything; she doesn't have all the answers. In fact, a lot of her actions in the book are immature, unhinged, and even foolish -- revealing her to be your average 16 year-old girl muddling through life. It just goes to show now more than ever that being a princess will not fix everything for you.

I found it a refreshing change for Meg Cabot to present obstacles that were not magically overcome by the end of the book. It shows that not all of life's problems can be neatly wrapped up by the last page, and it makes me look forward to the next volume even more. I just wish that it weren't so far away!