Star of the Show

by Jacqueline Wilson, Rachael Dean (illustrator)

‘I’m going to a place called Grand Theatre and I’m going to be a dancer in a pantomime!’


Tess loves to dance, even when everything seems grim. After mum dies and pa leaves, she and her brothers and sisters are all alone, with hardly any food or money. With empty stomachs and scrambling for pennies, they’ve got to fend for themselves.

When Tess’s big brother and sister go out to look for work, she has to stay in class at The Ragged School and take care of their baby sister Ada. But Tess is determined that even though she is poor, she will still get to go to the ball…or at least to dance in the Cinderella pantomime at the Grand Theatre…

A captivating Victorian adventure about family troubles and big dreams from the bestselling Jacqueline Wilson.

Genres: Historical Fiction, Middle Grade, Childrens, Historical

324 pages, Kindle Edition

Published August 15, 2024

About the author

Jacqueline Wilson was born in Bath in 1945, but spent most of her childhood in Kingston-on-Thames. She always wanted to be a writer and wrote her first ‘novel’ when she was nine, filling in countless Woolworths’ exercise books as she grew up. As a teenager she started work for a magazine publishing company and then went on to work as a journalist on Jackie magazine (which she was told was named after her!) before turning to writing novels full-time.

One of Jacqueline’s most successful and enduring creations has been the famous Tracy Beaker, who first appeared in 1991 in The Story of Tracy Beaker. This was also the first of her books to be illustrated by Nick Sharratt. Since then Jacqueline has been on countless awards shortlists and has gone on to win many awards. The Illustrated Mum won the Guardian Children’s Fiction Award, the 1999 Children’s Book of the Year at the British Book Awards and was also shortlisted for the 1999 Whitbread Children’s Book Award.

Double Act won the prestigious Smarties Medal and the Children’s Book Award as well as being highly commended for the Carnegie Medal. The Story of Tracy Beaker won the 2002 Blue Peter People’s Choice Award.

Jacqueline is one of the nation’s favourite authors, and her books are loved and cherished by young readers not only in the UK but all over the world. She has sold millions of books and in the UK alone the total now stands at over 35 million!

In 2002 Jacqueline was awarded the OBE for services to literacy in schools and from 2005 to 2007 she was the Children’s Laureate. In 2008 she became Dame Jacqueline Wilson.

Reviews

[Mollie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I’ll read anything Jaqueline Wilson writes! She’s such an amazing author. I did wish the ending was a little more polished, it just felt a bit rushed

[Emma Smith · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another sweet story from Jacky Wilson - and a perfect one to read going into the winter months!

There were so many parts of this story I adored, but to name a few... we have the wholesome sibling relationships, although sometimes complex, and the idea of infant death that is often skirted around in children's books, especially in the Victorian era when such a thing would be so common. I also loved that Tess was mostly illiterate, meaning she couldn't lose herself in stories the way so many other JW characters do. The book felt like the perfect blend of realism and Victorian fantasy that makes historical children's fiction feel so magical.

Another gorgeous hardback, too, that I can't wait to pass onto my own children. Such a joy to read - I can't wait for her next!

[Emily · Rating 4 out of 5]

I would give this book 3.5-3.75 stars (I’ll have to think on it a bit longer to decide which). Here is my pros and cons list-

PROS
- Maggie, Connor and Goody were my favourite characters
-I liked seeing the financial struggle of the family but then seeing that they were a support system for each other- and also how much they supported each other’s jobs too. They were so supportive of Tess when she got her understudy and I loved that!
-The plot line of Cedric’s mother’s baby dying- that was interesting and then when the father came to adopt Ada- I feel like there could have been a really interesting story there if it was chosen to go into
-I just love theatre so any theatre setting in a book I immediately like

CONS
- There were a lot of loose ends- for example all of the incomes to the family are temporary so how are they going to manage?
- The theatre took half the book to even get mentioned, even though it’s on the back of the book as the main plot. It felt quite rushed and squashed into half of the book. I still enjoyed it though
-The end of the book was really predictable. As soon as Tess was given the understudy I guessed that she was going to take the place of the mean girl. Again, still enjoyable but was a shame it was predictable.

So I did enjoy this book, and I enjoyed it more than The Girl who wasn’t there. I would recommend this and I’d give it 3.75 stars (I’ve decided now).

[Julia · Rating 5 out of 5]

Star Of The Show by Jacqueline Wilson is a most delightful, children’s historical novel that I thoroughly enjoyed. It is perfect for ages ten years and over.
The novel is set in Victorian times and surrounds a family of five children who don’t have much materially, but do have a lot of love.
The children have to fend for themselves. Each has a different talent (except for the baby) and they put their talents to work, bringing in money to support themselves and baby Ada.
The star of the book is definitely Tess. She has the ambition and drive to succeed in her dream. She also has love in her heart, spending her hard-earned money on Christmas gifts for her family and friends. She has a spirit of generosity.
We see the difference between the classes as Tess befriends Master Cedric who lives in a large house with servants. His household staff are warm and welcoming to Tess and her siblings.
Life is hard. Tragedy visits rich and poor alike.
Class divides, as the rich value money and status whereas Tess and her siblings value family and love.
We witness the guts and dedication that Tess has to achieve her dream. The phrase ‘not for you’ does not exist for Tess. She always accepts what she is given but hopes for more.
Star Of The Show is a perfect book to enjoy for anyone. I am far older than the target market but I loved it.

[Simone McKenna · Rating 4 out of 5]

Such a lovely, sweet, heartwarming and also bittersweet little read! I love JW Victorian novels and it was good to see another one come out.

Honestly, my only real problem was the ending, with there having been such a lack of closure I just felt pretty frustrated and mad. I mean I was actually ready to read more only to found the book came to an end. I mean there was so much unresolved, like what had happened with the situation with Cedric and his family wanting to adopt Ada, with it seeming like they had fallen out, which was a pity due to the friendship Tess had developed with Cedric, like was she never going to be friends with them again?! Also it's true that nothing was really resolved in terms of Tess and her siblings in the long-term, like Cedric's dad pointed out, like where they just going to live like that forever in financial instability?! Honestly it just annoyed me so much, there were so many loose ends that were not tied, so I am really hoping for a sequel.

The main thing that annoyed me about Cedric's parents wanting to adopt Ada was that it was so unfair on Tess who was the one who was friends with Cedric, meaning she would have had to watch her little sister get to live a life of luxury with her friend while she had to continue living in poverty. It also wasn't fair on Tess's other siblings as it means that only one of their siblings gets a happy ending while the rest of them would still struggle.

I get the message of how you can still be happy even if you're living in poverty, as long as you've got a loving family, but in reality there has to at least be financial stability in the long-term for them to actually be happy in the long-term, which is what the ending needed to address more. Like I say as well it was disappointing to see Tess and Cedric's friendship seemingly dissipate, just because of their class differences, as this should have been addressed really.

[Ash · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed this recent offering somewhat more than Think Again, JW’s lukewarm adult novel.

It was a quick and easy read. I’m used to Jacqueline Wilson’s little writing quirks and usual pitfalls, but it’s my opinion that she shines in her historical fiction.

Star of the Show is a sweet little story with not much of an offering when it comes to twists and turns, but everything is all wrapped up nicely with a little bow at the end. It is somewhat unrealistic and farcical at times but I think a nice read for young children.

[Sophie Crane · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is another lovely book from reliable children's author Jacqueline Wilson. The hardback is beautiful, with lovely illustrations, and would make a great gift.

The story follows Tess, a poor young girl who has to look after her younger siblings but who dreams of dancing. It's full of friendship, family, dreams and overcoming hardships. The characters and voices are really vivid and it's charming throughout. Perfect for children aged 7-10.

[Charlotte · Rating 3 out of 5]

3

[Nav (she/her) 🌧 · Rating 3 out of 5]

Jacqueline Wilson's books remind me of my childhood and I always look forward to reading new books the author has released.

WHAT IS THE BOOK ABOUT?
Star of the Show is about a young girl called Tess who lives in Victorian England with her father and siblings. One day the father walks out leaving Tess and her siblings to fend for themselves. Despite her circumstances, Tess still dreams of becoming a dancer.

LIKES:
- I've always enjoyed Jacqueline Wilson's historical fiction books and this book was no different. The world felt so real and this meant the scenes were easy to imagine.
- I loved the sibling relationship. They would argue and bicker over things but stuck together and were there for each other when they needed to be.
- I enjoyed the scenes between Tess and Cedric as they showed just how different life can be based on how much money people have. It was nice to see Cedric still wanted to talk to Tess even though her circumstances were so different from his.
- The theatre scenes were so well developed and easy to visualise that it felt like we were right there with Tess throughout it all.
- One of the nicest characters in the story was Goody. It was lovely to see how she looked out for Tess even though they barely knew each other.
- All stories need someone who makes the main characters life difficult and this was Larissa. She wasn't evil by any means but she did a good job of preventing Tess from getting to her goal.

DISLIKES:
- The ending felt quite abrupt to the point I was left wondering 'Oh, is that the end of the story?' I think an epilogue could have nicely wrapped up the story and answered a few questions that were left unanswered.

[Sheree Putt · Rating 5 out of 5]

awesome book

[LudmilaM · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really lovely story, that makes you turn the pages so easily. I don't know if there's anyone who writes the characters as palpable & realistic as Miss Wilson. It's a shame she cannot write good father figure characters, maybe because she has had no example of that in her own life, who knows - however, I do thing that good fathers are underappreciated in our society and underrepresented in books.