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Screen Queens
he Bold Type meets The Social Network when three girls participate in a startup incubator competition, and uncover the truth about what it means to succeed in the male-dominated world of tech.
This summer Silicon Valley is a girls' club.
Three thousand applicants. An acceptance rate of two percent. A dream internship for the winning team. ValleyStart is the most prestigious high school tech incubator competition in the country. Lucy Katz, Maddie Li, and Delia Meyer have secured their spots. And they've come to win.
Meet the Screen Queens.
Lucy Katz was born and raised in Palo Alto, so tech, well, it runs in her blood. A social butterfly and CEO in-the-making, Lucy is ready to win and party.
East Coast designer, Maddie Li left her home and small business behind for a summer at ValleyStart. Maddie thinks she's only there to bolster her graphic design portfolio, not to make friends.
Delia Meyer taught herself how to code on a hand-me-down computer in her tiny Midwestern town. Now, it's time for the big leagues - ValleyStart - but super shy Delia isn't sure if she can hack it (pun intended).
When the competition kicks off, Lucy, Maddie, and Delia realize just how challenging the next five weeks will be. As if there wasn't enough pressure already, the girls learn that they would be the only all-female team to win ever. Add in one first love, a two-faced mentor, and an ex-boyfriend turned nemesis and things get...complicated.
Filled with humor, heart, and a whole lot of girl power, Screen Queens is perfect for fans of Morgan Matson, Jenny Han, and The Bold Type.
This summer Silicon Valley is a girls' club.
Three thousand applicants. An acceptance rate of two percent. A dream internship for the winning team. ValleyStart is the most prestigious high school tech incubator competition in the country. Lucy Katz, Maddie Li, and Delia Meyer have secured their spots. And they've come to win.
Meet the Screen Queens.
Lucy Katz was born and raised in Palo Alto, so tech, well, it runs in her blood. A social butterfly and CEO in-the-making, Lucy is ready to win and party.
East Coast designer, Maddie Li left her home and small business behind for a summer at ValleyStart. Maddie thinks she's only there to bolster her graphic design portfolio, not to make friends.
Delia Meyer taught herself how to code on a hand-me-down computer in her tiny Midwestern town. Now, it's time for the big leagues - ValleyStart - but super shy Delia isn't sure if she can hack it (pun intended).
When the competition kicks off, Lucy, Maddie, and Delia realize just how challenging the next five weeks will be. As if there wasn't enough pressure already, the girls learn that they would be the only all-female team to win ever. Add in one first love, a two-faced mentor, and an ex-boyfriend turned nemesis and things get...complicated.
Filled with humor, heart, and a whole lot of girl power, Screen Queens is perfect for fans of Morgan Matson, Jenny Han, and The Bold Type.
367 pages, Audiobook
First published June 11, 2019
33 people are currently reading
4514 people want to read
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June 28, 2019
3.5 stars.
So just to clear up any confusion if you're the type of person who occasionally picks up a book without reading what it's about and simply assumes what it will be about based on the title, Lori Goldstein's new novel, Screen Queens , isn't about a bunch of actresses. (Hangs head sheepishly.)
Lucy Katz, Maddie Li, and Delia Meyer are three of only four young women accepted into ValleyStart, one of the most exclusive high school technology incubator competitions in the country. Only two percent of more than three thousand applicants are accepted, and the winning team is guaranteed a dream internship.
Although they share some kick-ass technical and design skills, Lucy, Delia, and Maddie couldn't be more different. Lucy is the daughter of one of the most famous (and few) female leaders in the technology industry, although she'll be the first to say she's nothing like her mother. She's hoping that she'll be able to ride her team's victory into an acceptance at Stanford, and she'll flirt with whomever she needs to in order to make her dreams happen.
Delia is shy and socially awkward, but she can code like nobody's business. Having grown up in a small Midwestern town, she taught herself to code on an out-of-date computer. She doesn't feel like she belongs among the children of privilege at ValleyStart, but she is determined to succeed, if for no other reason than to take the burden of supporting her off her parents.
Maddie arrives from Boston with a chip on her shoulder. She doesn't care much about winning the competition, or making friends. She is only interested in how her participation in ValleyStart might have an impact on the growth of her graphic design business. She also has to deal with her parents' marriage imploding, and its effect on her and her younger brother.
Screen Queens is a fun, heartfelt book about fighting for what you believe in and learning to stand up for yourself when all of the odds are stacked against you. It's the story of recognizing your strengths and your talents and not letting anyone tell you you're not worthy of success because you're a woman or a minority or because you don't come from a wealthy background. It's also a story about how sometimes you have to fight hard to make the truth known, and you can't be cowed into keeping quiet.
While this book is fairly predictable in terms of plot, I really enjoyed reading it. It has a great message and would be a terrific read for young women or those who could use a bit of a confidence boost. It also was a fascinating (although unsurprising) look at the challenges faced by women in the tech world, and a salute to the early female pioneers in that field.
I read the majority of this book on a plane (I seem to be doing that a lot lately) and thought Goldstein told a fun story. Sometimes when you're totally wrong about a book it still pays off in the end!
See all of my reviews at itseithersadnessoreuphoria.blogspot.com.
Check out my list of the best books I read in 2018 at https://itseithersadnessoreuphoria.blogspot.com/2019/01/the-best-books-i-read-in-2018.html.
You can follow me on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/the.bookishworld.of.yrralh/.
So just to clear up any confusion if you're the type of person who occasionally picks up a book without reading what it's about and simply assumes what it will be about based on the title, Lori Goldstein's new novel, Screen Queens , isn't about a bunch of actresses. (Hangs head sheepishly.)
Lucy Katz, Maddie Li, and Delia Meyer are three of only four young women accepted into ValleyStart, one of the most exclusive high school technology incubator competitions in the country. Only two percent of more than three thousand applicants are accepted, and the winning team is guaranteed a dream internship.
Although they share some kick-ass technical and design skills, Lucy, Delia, and Maddie couldn't be more different. Lucy is the daughter of one of the most famous (and few) female leaders in the technology industry, although she'll be the first to say she's nothing like her mother. She's hoping that she'll be able to ride her team's victory into an acceptance at Stanford, and she'll flirt with whomever she needs to in order to make her dreams happen.
Delia is shy and socially awkward, but she can code like nobody's business. Having grown up in a small Midwestern town, she taught herself to code on an out-of-date computer. She doesn't feel like she belongs among the children of privilege at ValleyStart, but she is determined to succeed, if for no other reason than to take the burden of supporting her off her parents.
Maddie arrives from Boston with a chip on her shoulder. She doesn't care much about winning the competition, or making friends. She is only interested in how her participation in ValleyStart might have an impact on the growth of her graphic design business. She also has to deal with her parents' marriage imploding, and its effect on her and her younger brother.
Screen Queens is a fun, heartfelt book about fighting for what you believe in and learning to stand up for yourself when all of the odds are stacked against you. It's the story of recognizing your strengths and your talents and not letting anyone tell you you're not worthy of success because you're a woman or a minority or because you don't come from a wealthy background. It's also a story about how sometimes you have to fight hard to make the truth known, and you can't be cowed into keeping quiet.
While this book is fairly predictable in terms of plot, I really enjoyed reading it. It has a great message and would be a terrific read for young women or those who could use a bit of a confidence boost. It also was a fascinating (although unsurprising) look at the challenges faced by women in the tech world, and a salute to the early female pioneers in that field.
I read the majority of this book on a plane (I seem to be doing that a lot lately) and thought Goldstein told a fun story. Sometimes when you're totally wrong about a book it still pays off in the end!
See all of my reviews at itseithersadnessoreuphoria.blogspot.com.
Check out my list of the best books I read in 2018 at https://itseithersadnessoreuphoria.blogspot.com/2019/01/the-best-books-i-read-in-2018.html.
You can follow me on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/the.bookishworld.of.yrralh/.
September 29, 2021
I received a copy of this book for free as part of an Instagram book tour (Storygram Tours) I did to promote the book.
I was really excited to read this book since it takes place in the Silicon Valley and that is where I was born and raised.
The book started off on the slow side and it felt a little superficial. It read like a typical YA novel with high school drama and it dragged in parts because of that. However, once the main conflict happened, the book matured and picked up the pace. The empowering message finally managed to shine through.
The book’s greatest strength is its messages about female empowerment, female friendship, women in STEM, sexism, and sexual harassment. The book touched upon and explored all of these topics in a meaningful way. I was happy to see that the book did not shy away from the realities of the (predominantly male) tech world.
On the other hand, the book greatest’s weakness were the characters. I didn’t particularly love any of them because I didn’t feel an emotional attachment towards them.
I typically don’t talk about book covers in reviews, but I have to mention this book’s because the girls on the cover actually depict the girls in the story. They are an exact match, right down to their necklaces. I love that attention to detail!
Overall, if you’re looking for an empowering YA read or are interested in the tech world, consider picking this one up!
I was really excited to read this book since it takes place in the Silicon Valley and that is where I was born and raised.
The book started off on the slow side and it felt a little superficial. It read like a typical YA novel with high school drama and it dragged in parts because of that. However, once the main conflict happened, the book matured and picked up the pace. The empowering message finally managed to shine through.
The book’s greatest strength is its messages about female empowerment, female friendship, women in STEM, sexism, and sexual harassment. The book touched upon and explored all of these topics in a meaningful way. I was happy to see that the book did not shy away from the realities of the (predominantly male) tech world.
On the other hand, the book greatest’s weakness were the characters. I didn’t particularly love any of them because I didn’t feel an emotional attachment towards them.
I typically don’t talk about book covers in reviews, but I have to mention this book’s because the girls on the cover actually depict the girls in the story. They are an exact match, right down to their necklaces. I love that attention to detail!
Overall, if you’re looking for an empowering YA read or are interested in the tech world, consider picking this one up!
June 26, 2019
You can also read my review here: https://devouringbooks2017.wordpress....
This book was one that I picked up on complete impulse. I heard about the blog tour and signed up thinking that I may get the opportunity to read it, and lucky that I did, because this book was exactly what I needed. I don’t read a lot of contemporaries, but I really should because I almost always wind up enjoying them way more than anticipated. Screen Queens is such an important read for young adults and especially young women. This story is about girls who are in STEM, specifically, girls in computer science. It made me interested in coding and computer science, more important than that though, it highlighted the struggles of women in this male dominated field. Screen Queens was a fun read, but it was also a powerful one.
Screen Queens was a young adult novel that I really felt represented teens well. The struggles of growing up and deciding what to do with th rest of your life were shown in three very different perspectives. Lucy, Delia and Maddie are each brilliant, empowered young women interested in computer science and Lori Goldstein does a great job of giving each of their perspectives a distinct voice and personality. The writing is light and flows at a great pace. This book pulled me out of a slump after reading some dense high fantasy. The idea of an app that rates people based on their populatiry on socal media combined with the novel’s light hearted pace really grabbed my attention.
As a person who runs a blog and a bookstagram I could really relate to how likes and comments can start to feel like your worth as an online presence, so I really loved the idea of the Pulse app because I could see how something like that could turn sinister. While parts of this novel felt a little too political for me, I also felt like this was an incredibly important read. I loved that this book was about teenage girls interested in STEM because I don’t feel like there are many YA fiction books about women in science. I found myself even getting interested in coding because of the way it was presented.
I really enjoyed this quick read and felt like it is an important book for young women. I loved the representation of women in STEM and felt like it was presented in such an interesting way, but felt like aspects of the book were overly political for my tastes. It was a fast paced read with good characters that will be empowering for young women. I would recommend this to young women or fans of the contemporary genre.
This book was one that I picked up on complete impulse. I heard about the blog tour and signed up thinking that I may get the opportunity to read it, and lucky that I did, because this book was exactly what I needed. I don’t read a lot of contemporaries, but I really should because I almost always wind up enjoying them way more than anticipated. Screen Queens is such an important read for young adults and especially young women. This story is about girls who are in STEM, specifically, girls in computer science. It made me interested in coding and computer science, more important than that though, it highlighted the struggles of women in this male dominated field. Screen Queens was a fun read, but it was also a powerful one.
Screen Queens was a young adult novel that I really felt represented teens well. The struggles of growing up and deciding what to do with th rest of your life were shown in three very different perspectives. Lucy, Delia and Maddie are each brilliant, empowered young women interested in computer science and Lori Goldstein does a great job of giving each of their perspectives a distinct voice and personality. The writing is light and flows at a great pace. This book pulled me out of a slump after reading some dense high fantasy. The idea of an app that rates people based on their populatiry on socal media combined with the novel’s light hearted pace really grabbed my attention.
As a person who runs a blog and a bookstagram I could really relate to how likes and comments can start to feel like your worth as an online presence, so I really loved the idea of the Pulse app because I could see how something like that could turn sinister. While parts of this novel felt a little too political for me, I also felt like this was an incredibly important read. I loved that this book was about teenage girls interested in STEM because I don’t feel like there are many YA fiction books about women in science. I found myself even getting interested in coding because of the way it was presented.
I really enjoyed this quick read and felt like it is an important book for young women. I loved the representation of women in STEM and felt like it was presented in such an interesting way, but felt like aspects of the book were overly political for my tastes. It was a fast paced read with good characters that will be empowering for young women. I would recommend this to young women or fans of the contemporary genre.
Want to read
May 9, 2019you had me at The Bold Type!!!!!
June 21, 2019
Originally published on The Nerd Daily | Review by Nathalie DeFelice
I love stories about the empowerment of women, especially in the tech world. Screen Queens will make readers quake with outrage at the injustice that women face everyday in the industry, and then turn that stereotype into fodder for change through three young women who’ve had enough. I laughed, I raged, and I ultimately loved this story. We get to see relationships challenged and change for the better, or at times, worse. More importantly, we get to see women empower each other, not just tear away at themselves.
At the crux of this story are Lucy, Maddie, and Delia. All three of these young women have just made it into ValleyStart, the tech program where they can jump start their dreams. For Lucy, it’s the opportunity of a lifetime, getting to rub elbows with the big-wigs in tech as a future CEO in training. Maddie sees it as the ultimate chance to bolster her design portfolio and nothing else, while Delia is ready to find out if she can make it in the tech world as a self-taught coder. As the competition begins, these girls realise how challenging the weeks ahead will be, adding on the fact that if they win…they’ll be the first female only team to win. Let’s also add a first love, a nemesis ex, and a two faced mentor and we’ve got a wild ride ahead.
The story is told in three perspectives, which I quite liked, getting insight from Lucy, Maddie, and Delia really helped round out the story. More importantly, it helped distinguish their personalities, thoughts, and feelings. The character development in this story was really something. While I do love rooting for the main characters in the story, I will openly admit that I was a little underwhelmed with Lucy at the start. She comes off as superficial, fake, and ultimately only seeking to better her social status. I was disappointed, however, she does eventually grow on you. Not only that, but readers will begin to understand and see the motivations and drive behind her actions.
Maddie is quite the opposite in terms of Lucy, she likes to keep to herself, and is not in any way interested in Lucy’s machinations until she gets to know her. She’s a tough nut with a squishy center. The relationship she has with her brother was sweet, and I loved that this also showed in her interactions with other kids her brother’s age. Delia is the shyest and youngest of the group, very timid and soft spoken. However, she’s got a back-bone of steel. One of my favourite scenes is toward the very beginning, where she stands up for herself in front of Lucy. It’s an assertion that she might be shy, but she will not let people bully or put her down.
These girls are besieged by challenges of all kinds, but I think the most important one is how they’re treated by some of the men within this book. They are objectified, ridiculed, and their accomplishments minimised especially in comparison to men. It made their pushback so incredibly satisfying to read. It expressed the solidarity that women should have in the face of someone attempting to tear them down.
Though the story did feel to start off a little slow, it definitely gained momentum and strength as I kept reading. I couldn’t put it down toward the end. There was a sweet romance as well that slowly builds, and felt satisfyingly quirky. There’s also a lot of humour to be found in this story, and I loved it, even when I got side-eyed at work while reading. That being said, at times there were moments where I felt there was a disconnect between certain characters, like we were potentially missing some important development in certain scenes. It isn’t enough to be really bothersome, but I think other readers might also find the same thing happening as they are reading.
Ultimately, Screen Queens attempts to dismantle outdated ways of thinking; especially sexism and the attitudes of men towards women in the tech world. Though there are some minor things that I didn’t love, overall, it’s a great story. It’s an 8/10 for me. I encourage others to pick up and read this story, especially if you need a dose of women empowerment. It will also make an excellent summer read.
I love stories about the empowerment of women, especially in the tech world. Screen Queens will make readers quake with outrage at the injustice that women face everyday in the industry, and then turn that stereotype into fodder for change through three young women who’ve had enough. I laughed, I raged, and I ultimately loved this story. We get to see relationships challenged and change for the better, or at times, worse. More importantly, we get to see women empower each other, not just tear away at themselves.
At the crux of this story are Lucy, Maddie, and Delia. All three of these young women have just made it into ValleyStart, the tech program where they can jump start their dreams. For Lucy, it’s the opportunity of a lifetime, getting to rub elbows with the big-wigs in tech as a future CEO in training. Maddie sees it as the ultimate chance to bolster her design portfolio and nothing else, while Delia is ready to find out if she can make it in the tech world as a self-taught coder. As the competition begins, these girls realise how challenging the weeks ahead will be, adding on the fact that if they win…they’ll be the first female only team to win. Let’s also add a first love, a nemesis ex, and a two faced mentor and we’ve got a wild ride ahead.
The story is told in three perspectives, which I quite liked, getting insight from Lucy, Maddie, and Delia really helped round out the story. More importantly, it helped distinguish their personalities, thoughts, and feelings. The character development in this story was really something. While I do love rooting for the main characters in the story, I will openly admit that I was a little underwhelmed with Lucy at the start. She comes off as superficial, fake, and ultimately only seeking to better her social status. I was disappointed, however, she does eventually grow on you. Not only that, but readers will begin to understand and see the motivations and drive behind her actions.
Maddie is quite the opposite in terms of Lucy, she likes to keep to herself, and is not in any way interested in Lucy’s machinations until she gets to know her. She’s a tough nut with a squishy center. The relationship she has with her brother was sweet, and I loved that this also showed in her interactions with other kids her brother’s age. Delia is the shyest and youngest of the group, very timid and soft spoken. However, she’s got a back-bone of steel. One of my favourite scenes is toward the very beginning, where she stands up for herself in front of Lucy. It’s an assertion that she might be shy, but she will not let people bully or put her down.
These girls are besieged by challenges of all kinds, but I think the most important one is how they’re treated by some of the men within this book. They are objectified, ridiculed, and their accomplishments minimised especially in comparison to men. It made their pushback so incredibly satisfying to read. It expressed the solidarity that women should have in the face of someone attempting to tear them down.
Though the story did feel to start off a little slow, it definitely gained momentum and strength as I kept reading. I couldn’t put it down toward the end. There was a sweet romance as well that slowly builds, and felt satisfyingly quirky. There’s also a lot of humour to be found in this story, and I loved it, even when I got side-eyed at work while reading. That being said, at times there were moments where I felt there was a disconnect between certain characters, like we were potentially missing some important development in certain scenes. It isn’t enough to be really bothersome, but I think other readers might also find the same thing happening as they are reading.
Ultimately, Screen Queens attempts to dismantle outdated ways of thinking; especially sexism and the attitudes of men towards women in the tech world. Though there are some minor things that I didn’t love, overall, it’s a great story. It’s an 8/10 for me. I encourage others to pick up and read this story, especially if you need a dose of women empowerment. It will also make an excellent summer read.
July 24, 2019
Screen Queens is an exciting and refreshing read.
July 22, 2019
4.5/5 Stars
Being a girl in a male-dominated field isn't easy. Screen Queens shows us just that, but also how girls can thrive, persevere, and kick ass in tech.
This book is the perfect summer read: it's fun, quick, but also empowering. And it'll make you feel all the things.
We get Lucy, Maddie, and Delia, three girls who couldn't be more different, who are paired together as a team at their tech incubator program. Only a small percent of applicants get into this prestigious competition, and only a smaller percentage of them are girls. The three girls struggle to work together and sort out their differences at first, but they come together and become unexpected friends with the dream of being the first all-girl team to win ValleyStart.
I loved it. The writing was fun and easy to follow, and we follow the three different POVs of the three girls. Each girl has a distinct voice and backstory with their own motives, but they've all come together to work towards the same goal. Once I got into the story, I was hooked, and I read the last 2/3 of the book in one sitting. Which hasn't happened to me in a while. I became so immersed in the story that I felt anxious for the girls as they went into Demo Day and were about to do the thing. I felt all the emotions and cheered them on, and felt all the rage that was to be felt at the things they had to go through to get to where they are.
This book does a perfect job at highlighting a women's struggle in the professional world, especially in tech, where even less women dominate. I've seen some reviews saying they liked this story but didn't enjoy how political it got, but here's the thing: you can't tell this story without making it political. Being a woman, especially a woman of colour, and maneuvering through a male-dominated world is a political thing. To remove politics would be to ignore the reality of the situation.
The way the girls were enlightened into the true struggle of being a woman in tech was heartbreaking, honestly. They were so naive in the beginning, but as a reader you can see the references early on to them having to deal with horrible men. But sometimes people don't notice how horrible people are until it's right in front of them. These girls come face-to-face with how cruel men can be to women, and it almost drives them to quit, but they face the adversity and stand up for themselves. They become more confident in themselves and fight back. They stand up for the voices that are often silenced by powerful men.
I really don't have any solid issues to not give this 5-stars, but there was just something in the beginning that was holding me back from getting into the story. I can't quite put my finger on it, but I didn't get hooked until just over 100 pages. So I'll say 4.5/5 stars, just for a slower start.
Anyway, this book is an impactful one full of empowered girls, and I highly recommend it. It's fiction, but startling accurate to women's real-life struggle in male-dominated fields, and it's a reality that needs to be talked about more and fought against. This book does just that.
Review can also be found on my blog!
*ARC provided by the publisher for an honest review*
Being a girl in a male-dominated field isn't easy. Screen Queens shows us just that, but also how girls can thrive, persevere, and kick ass in tech.
This book is the perfect summer read: it's fun, quick, but also empowering. And it'll make you feel all the things.
We get Lucy, Maddie, and Delia, three girls who couldn't be more different, who are paired together as a team at their tech incubator program. Only a small percent of applicants get into this prestigious competition, and only a smaller percentage of them are girls. The three girls struggle to work together and sort out their differences at first, but they come together and become unexpected friends with the dream of being the first all-girl team to win ValleyStart.
I loved it. The writing was fun and easy to follow, and we follow the three different POVs of the three girls. Each girl has a distinct voice and backstory with their own motives, but they've all come together to work towards the same goal. Once I got into the story, I was hooked, and I read the last 2/3 of the book in one sitting. Which hasn't happened to me in a while. I became so immersed in the story that I felt anxious for the girls as they went into Demo Day and were about to do the thing. I felt all the emotions and cheered them on, and felt all the rage that was to be felt at the things they had to go through to get to where they are.
This book does a perfect job at highlighting a women's struggle in the professional world, especially in tech, where even less women dominate. I've seen some reviews saying they liked this story but didn't enjoy how political it got, but here's the thing: you can't tell this story without making it political. Being a woman, especially a woman of colour, and maneuvering through a male-dominated world is a political thing. To remove politics would be to ignore the reality of the situation.
The way the girls were enlightened into the true struggle of being a woman in tech was heartbreaking, honestly. They were so naive in the beginning, but as a reader you can see the references early on to them having to deal with horrible men. But sometimes people don't notice how horrible people are until it's right in front of them. These girls come face-to-face with how cruel men can be to women, and it almost drives them to quit, but they face the adversity and stand up for themselves. They become more confident in themselves and fight back. They stand up for the voices that are often silenced by powerful men.
I really don't have any solid issues to not give this 5-stars, but there was just something in the beginning that was holding me back from getting into the story. I can't quite put my finger on it, but I didn't get hooked until just over 100 pages. So I'll say 4.5/5 stars, just for a slower start.
Anyway, this book is an impactful one full of empowered girls, and I highly recommend it. It's fiction, but startling accurate to women's real-life struggle in male-dominated fields, and it's a reality that needs to be talked about more and fought against. This book does just that.
Review can also be found on my blog!
*ARC provided by the publisher for an honest review*
February 20, 2019
4.5 stars
I had an idea of where this book was headed early on but still reading it shocked me. It pissed me off but in a good way (it'll make sense once you read the book!). If you don't walk away feeling empowered, you might be broken.
FRTC
I had an idea of where this book was headed early on but still reading it shocked me. It pissed me off but in a good way (it'll make sense once you read the book!). If you don't walk away feeling empowered, you might be broken.
FRTC
December 20, 2018
God, this book made me SO ANGRY but in the best way. I'm not even in tech, but reading this book still felt cathartic. I wish I'd had the opportunity to read it as a teen, back before I could relate to so very much of it. Screen Queens touches on so many issues of feminism without getting didactic and above and beyond all that, it's just a blast to read. Loved it.
August 8, 2019
I just want to shove this in the hands of every girl (and woman) I know! It's incredibly smart, incredibly timely and incredibly inspiring. I LOVED IT!!!!!
June 11, 2019
Huge thanks to BookSparks for sending me a free copy of Screen Queens along with some bookish swag for having me as an event Ambassador tomorrow (June 12th) @7pm at Porter Square Books in Cambridge, Ma - I'm super excited to be a part of it and meet the author along with two fellow Bookstagrammers who I'm meeting and doing the event with!!
This book was a super fast read for me and took me about 2/3 days to finish.
I also read this book as a buddy read with the other BookSharks that will be joining me in the event.
This book is about three girls who are smart as heck. They all are here for the same reason. To win a Pulse internship which will ultimately put them on the right track with their future careers.
As this is the number one factor for them, they each become friends.
While getting closer together as each day passes, during there five weeks where they have discovered something disturbing and not right with their mentor and leader who most practically worshiped, Ryan Thompson.
As the girls easily discover that something isn't right within Ryan Thompson's company Pulse, they immediately abandon there App there supposed to present at the end of the five weeks in order to win the scholarship that is Pulse. That doesn't seem to matter anymore because what they plan to do now knowing what they do about Ryan Thompson and Pulse is going to be bigger than any Pulse internship they could have wanted/hoped for.
Finally upon revealing the truths about Pulse and what Ryan Thompson has been hiding and faking for the past year or so. They turn to their mentor and fellow winner of ValleyStart Nishi who guides them in the way they needed. With ultimate girl power backing them up they created and came up with the concept Girls Empowered on such short notice to throw Ryan and the other teams off there game.
And just when Ryan least expected it, Nishi introduces the next team to the stage and gives them the chance to explain their new up and reveal what has been discovered.
In the end, they each walked away with something more than they came with.
Whether it is friendship, a newfound perspective, or even love, they each made their time at ValleyStart worthwhile.
This was a great Youth Adult novel with smart women who are on the brink of success and how they will let no one or anything come in there a way of success.
And if you are a tech fanatic and think you're the only girl whos alone in that department, you are wrong. This book proves that and uplifts the impossibilities of future tech females to come.
This book was a super fast read for me and took me about 2/3 days to finish.
I also read this book as a buddy read with the other BookSharks that will be joining me in the event.
This book is about three girls who are smart as heck. They all are here for the same reason. To win a Pulse internship which will ultimately put them on the right track with their future careers.
As this is the number one factor for them, they each become friends.
While getting closer together as each day passes, during there five weeks where they have discovered something disturbing and not right with their mentor and leader who most practically worshiped, Ryan Thompson.
As the girls easily discover that something isn't right within Ryan Thompson's company Pulse, they immediately abandon there App there supposed to present at the end of the five weeks in order to win the scholarship that is Pulse. That doesn't seem to matter anymore because what they plan to do now knowing what they do about Ryan Thompson and Pulse is going to be bigger than any Pulse internship they could have wanted/hoped for.
Finally upon revealing the truths about Pulse and what Ryan Thompson has been hiding and faking for the past year or so. They turn to their mentor and fellow winner of ValleyStart Nishi who guides them in the way they needed. With ultimate girl power backing them up they created and came up with the concept Girls Empowered on such short notice to throw Ryan and the other teams off there game.
And just when Ryan least expected it, Nishi introduces the next team to the stage and gives them the chance to explain their new up and reveal what has been discovered.
In the end, they each walked away with something more than they came with.
Whether it is friendship, a newfound perspective, or even love, they each made their time at ValleyStart worthwhile.
This was a great Youth Adult novel with smart women who are on the brink of success and how they will let no one or anything come in there a way of success.
And if you are a tech fanatic and think you're the only girl whos alone in that department, you are wrong. This book proves that and uplifts the impossibilities of future tech females to come.
June 25, 2019
Full 4.5 Star review is up on the blog!
https://thecleverreader.wordpress.com...
https://thecleverreader.wordpress.com...
June 5, 2019
So good, so much girl power. I feel like it took me a little while to get into this for some reason, and warm up to everything/everyone. However, once it got rolling, I was hooked. It's the kind of book that makes you mad at how the world is but allows for the right celebration and hope for change at the end. Highly recommend, especially to girls who work in male-dominated fields.
June 19, 2019
Two and a half stars. I liked the book's cover right away. I kept closing the book to admire it when I was trying to decide whether I should keep reading it. Sometimes, the cartoon-style covers are simplistic and yet communicate a lot in the way of small details, as did this one. I misunderstood what this book was about when I placed it on hold, but decided to give it a shot anyway when it came in at the library. It still kind of felt like false advertising. This is a story about three girls who originally don't like each other, but are grouped together at a tech summer camp so they need to work together, both on their project and to take down a predator.
The book jacket kind of made it sound like they would all be fast friends despite their differences and that the book would approach topics in a different way than the writing actually did. I didn't buy the girls' changes from enemies to friends, when I was reading this. I didn't find any of them likeable. I didn't care about who they missed and why, nor at things at stake for them. The writing just wasn't there for me. The characters...weren't naive. Naive isn't the right word. They were operating with the information given to them about life from people who had lived it in very specific ways. None of these girls set themselves up an Option B if this didn't work out, and readers got to see things fall apart for Lucy. I disliked Lucy perhaps the most. Portrayals don't exist in a vacuum, and the author went with ones I felt were really damaging. I got -why- she did it, though, and have been thinking a lot about it. I didn't like Lucy, but I was still really sad that Ryan did those things.
Lots of mixed feelings over here on every aspect of the story. I wasn't the intended audience, but I lived the real-life version of this story. Went to the right school program, didn't pick an option B, landed a competitive internship (I was one of two people to get it for the seven-month period), worked hard. Everything pointed to me having a bright future and awesome career ahead of me. The actual result was that what few jobs I was able to land over the next five years always ended after four months, often much sooner and for stupid reasons. I live in a state where people can be fired for any reason or no reason at all. Pay is higher than minimum wage so that the employer doesn't have to pay your healthcare. I wish I were exaggerating. The day I read this book, I had just gotten fired after working at a place for five days. I wondered a lot while reading the book if my opinion would be different had I a more stable work history and a far less cynical and jaded outlook.
The book jacket kind of made it sound like they would all be fast friends despite their differences and that the book would approach topics in a different way than the writing actually did. I didn't buy the girls' changes from enemies to friends, when I was reading this. I didn't find any of them likeable. I didn't care about who they missed and why, nor at things at stake for them. The writing just wasn't there for me. The characters...weren't naive. Naive isn't the right word. They were operating with the information given to them about life from people who had lived it in very specific ways. None of these girls set themselves up an Option B if this didn't work out, and readers got to see things fall apart for Lucy. I disliked Lucy perhaps the most. Portrayals don't exist in a vacuum, and the author went with ones I felt were really damaging. I got -why- she did it, though, and have been thinking a lot about it. I didn't like Lucy, but I was still really sad that Ryan did those things.
Lots of mixed feelings over here on every aspect of the story. I wasn't the intended audience, but I lived the real-life version of this story. Went to the right school program, didn't pick an option B, landed a competitive internship (I was one of two people to get it for the seven-month period), worked hard. Everything pointed to me having a bright future and awesome career ahead of me. The actual result was that what few jobs I was able to land over the next five years always ended after four months, often much sooner and for stupid reasons. I live in a state where people can be fired for any reason or no reason at all. Pay is higher than minimum wage so that the employer doesn't have to pay your healthcare. I wish I were exaggerating. The day I read this book, I had just gotten fired after working at a place for five days. I wondered a lot while reading the book if my opinion would be different had I a more stable work history and a far less cynical and jaded outlook.
June 5, 2019
(I received a free eARC from Netgalley and Fantastic flying book club for a voluntary and honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own)
Book review: Screen Queens by Lori Goldstein (3 stars)
Screen Queens by Lori Goldstein
Genre: YA, Contemporary, Romance
Rating: 3/5 stars
(Review)
(DISCLAIMER: All thoughts and opinions are my own.)
(Synopsis from Goodreads)
The Bold Type meets The Social Network when three girls vying for prestigious summer internships through a startup incubator program uncover the truth about what it means to succeed in the male-dominated world of tech.
This summer Silicon Valley is a girls' club.
Three thousand applicants. An acceptance rate of two percent. A dream internship for the winning team. ValleyStart is the most prestigious high school tech incubator competition in the country. Lucy Katz, Maddie Li, and Delia Meyer have secured their spots. And they've come to win.
Meet the Screen Queens.
Lucy Katz was born and raised in Palo Alto, so tech, well, it runs in her blood. A social butterfly and CEO in-the-making, Lucy is ready to win and party.
East Coast designer, Maddie Li left her home and small business behind for a summer at ValleyStart. Maddie thinks she's only there to bolster her graphic design portfolio, not to make friends.
Delia Meyer taught herself how to code on a hand-me-down computer in her tiny Midwestern town. Now, it's time for the big leagues--ValleyStart--but super shy Delia isn't sure if she can hack it (pun intended).
When the competition kicks off, Lucy, Maddie, and Delia realize just how challenging the next five weeks will be. As if there wasn't enough pressure already, the girls learn that they would be the only all-female team to win ever. Add in one first love, a two-faced mentor, and an ex-boyfriend turned nemesis and things get...complicated.
Filled with humor, heart, and a whole lot of girl power, Screen Queens is perfect for fans of Morgan Matson, Jenny Han, and The Bold Type.
-
The story is told in alternate POVs between the three, Maddie, Lucy and Delia. I love that we have female tech gurus. I really love the female empowerment in the book and the teamwork between the three. I love that although they didn’t really get along at first, but end up working together and growing together.
This book is a great story about females working together in the tech world to overcome current problems. Definitely would recommend this book to everyone!
Book review: Screen Queens by Lori Goldstein (3 stars)
Screen Queens by Lori Goldstein
Genre: YA, Contemporary, Romance
Rating: 3/5 stars
(Review)
(DISCLAIMER: All thoughts and opinions are my own.)
(Synopsis from Goodreads)
The Bold Type meets The Social Network when three girls vying for prestigious summer internships through a startup incubator program uncover the truth about what it means to succeed in the male-dominated world of tech.
This summer Silicon Valley is a girls' club.
Three thousand applicants. An acceptance rate of two percent. A dream internship for the winning team. ValleyStart is the most prestigious high school tech incubator competition in the country. Lucy Katz, Maddie Li, and Delia Meyer have secured their spots. And they've come to win.
Meet the Screen Queens.
Lucy Katz was born and raised in Palo Alto, so tech, well, it runs in her blood. A social butterfly and CEO in-the-making, Lucy is ready to win and party.
East Coast designer, Maddie Li left her home and small business behind for a summer at ValleyStart. Maddie thinks she's only there to bolster her graphic design portfolio, not to make friends.
Delia Meyer taught herself how to code on a hand-me-down computer in her tiny Midwestern town. Now, it's time for the big leagues--ValleyStart--but super shy Delia isn't sure if she can hack it (pun intended).
When the competition kicks off, Lucy, Maddie, and Delia realize just how challenging the next five weeks will be. As if there wasn't enough pressure already, the girls learn that they would be the only all-female team to win ever. Add in one first love, a two-faced mentor, and an ex-boyfriend turned nemesis and things get...complicated.
Filled with humor, heart, and a whole lot of girl power, Screen Queens is perfect for fans of Morgan Matson, Jenny Han, and The Bold Type.
-
The story is told in alternate POVs between the three, Maddie, Lucy and Delia. I love that we have female tech gurus. I really love the female empowerment in the book and the teamwork between the three. I love that although they didn’t really get along at first, but end up working together and growing together.
This book is a great story about females working together in the tech world to overcome current problems. Definitely would recommend this book to everyone!
April 21, 2024
okay the message was fine. but the main problem for me was the description. i had no clue what was going on AT ALL because this book was just all angst and dialogue.
Read
June 19, 2019Graded By: Rosemary
Cover Story: Cartoon Cutesy
BFF Charm: Mixed Bag
Swoonworthy Scale: 3
Talky Talk: 2 Fast, 2 Furious
Bonus Factor: Girls in Tech
Factor: Black Mirror
Relationship Status: Swipe Left
Read the full book report here.
Cover Story: Cartoon Cutesy
BFF Charm: Mixed Bag
Swoonworthy Scale: 3
Talky Talk: 2 Fast, 2 Furious
Bonus Factor: Girls in Tech
Factor: Black Mirror
Relationship Status: Swipe Left
Read the full book report here.
April 6, 2022
This was a lot of fun! These gals are a hoot!!!
Read
November 12, 2019This summer, Silicon Valley is a girls' club.
It's competition time! Wading through a sea of three thousand applicants and a 2% acceptance rate, three girls are here to make a name for themselves. Lucy, Maddie, and Delia are ready to jump start their careers by winning an internship from a startup tech incubator. However, their personalities clash at Valley Start, the most prestigious tech competition in the country. Working together isn't going to be easy, but the trio soon finds they have much bigger problems to face. But these queens aren't going down without a fight.
Trigger warnings for sexual assault, misogyny, and panic attacks.
A story of three young women proving they can do anything they set their minds to. Three emerging tech queens take their rightful thrones.
Enthusiastically outgoing, Lucy was ready to do whatever it took to get to the top. With Stanford so close she can taste it, Lucy was determined to lead her team to victory. As goal-driven as Lucy was, she wasn't afraid to party, especially if it benefited her in the long run. Slightly snobby, Lucy underwent devastating events that humbled her. However, I admired her as she never lost her confidence.
Brash but caring, Maddie wasn't about to let herself be stepped on. Though she may have left her family drama on the East coast, it followed her heart to California. As she dealt with the guilt of leaving her little brother behind, she tried to use her time at Valley Start to further her graphic design business. The most motherly of the girls, she glued the trio together.
Shy and unsure of herself, Delia felt like the odd one out amongst her peers. A wickedly smart, self-taught coder, she was determined to succeed. Her sweet, anxious heart was a lot braver than she knew. It was heartwarming to watch her realize her self-worth.
Nobody said this is going to be easy, but these three girls were here to stay. Between Lucy's social prowess, Maddie's creativity, and Delia's sharp brain, these girls formed a total powerhouse. They impressively stood stalwart in a male-dominated industry. Although their transformation from competitors to partners could have been a bit more nuanced, they truly emboldened each other. By building each other up, they all realized what superstars they truly were.
It's time to smash more glass ceilings! It's no secret women have been made to majorly struggle in a wide variety of professions, and Screen Queens more than brought light to all of the disgusting discrepancies. Beautifully bold, this tale is full of women who refused to let things stay the same. Though relationships might have been fraught, each girl had a strong female presence in her life. As Lucy, Maddie, and Delia became tech goddesses, they met and payed tribute to the kick-ass ladies who blazed the trail before them. A simple, but not entirely realistic plot was narrated by three distinct voices. Lori Goldstein penned a timely and poignant tale that inspires girl power. Feminism radiated through this book. I also loved its messages of empowering the next generation of girls, encouraging them and telling them that they can do anything that they want to.
I'm excited for a future powered by more Screen Queens.
It's competition time! Wading through a sea of three thousand applicants and a 2% acceptance rate, three girls are here to make a name for themselves. Lucy, Maddie, and Delia are ready to jump start their careers by winning an internship from a startup tech incubator. However, their personalities clash at Valley Start, the most prestigious tech competition in the country. Working together isn't going to be easy, but the trio soon finds they have much bigger problems to face. But these queens aren't going down without a fight.
Trigger warnings for sexual assault, misogyny, and panic attacks.
A story of three young women proving they can do anything they set their minds to. Three emerging tech queens take their rightful thrones.
Enthusiastically outgoing, Lucy was ready to do whatever it took to get to the top. With Stanford so close she can taste it, Lucy was determined to lead her team to victory. As goal-driven as Lucy was, she wasn't afraid to party, especially if it benefited her in the long run. Slightly snobby, Lucy underwent devastating events that humbled her. However, I admired her as she never lost her confidence.
Brash but caring, Maddie wasn't about to let herself be stepped on. Though she may have left her family drama on the East coast, it followed her heart to California. As she dealt with the guilt of leaving her little brother behind, she tried to use her time at Valley Start to further her graphic design business. The most motherly of the girls, she glued the trio together.
Shy and unsure of herself, Delia felt like the odd one out amongst her peers. A wickedly smart, self-taught coder, she was determined to succeed. Her sweet, anxious heart was a lot braver than she knew. It was heartwarming to watch her realize her self-worth.
Nobody said this is going to be easy, but these three girls were here to stay. Between Lucy's social prowess, Maddie's creativity, and Delia's sharp brain, these girls formed a total powerhouse. They impressively stood stalwart in a male-dominated industry. Although their transformation from competitors to partners could have been a bit more nuanced, they truly emboldened each other. By building each other up, they all realized what superstars they truly were.
It's time to smash more glass ceilings! It's no secret women have been made to majorly struggle in a wide variety of professions, and Screen Queens more than brought light to all of the disgusting discrepancies. Beautifully bold, this tale is full of women who refused to let things stay the same. Though relationships might have been fraught, each girl had a strong female presence in her life. As Lucy, Maddie, and Delia became tech goddesses, they met and payed tribute to the kick-ass ladies who blazed the trail before them. A simple, but not entirely realistic plot was narrated by three distinct voices. Lori Goldstein penned a timely and poignant tale that inspires girl power. Feminism radiated through this book. I also loved its messages of empowering the next generation of girls, encouraging them and telling them that they can do anything that they want to.
I'm excited for a future powered by more Screen Queens.
July 4, 2019
This review and many others can also be found at Musings of a (Book) Girl.
Content Warnings: underage drinking, attempted assault, panic attacks
I’m really finding myself to be the black sheep on a ton of popular releases this year and I hate it. I was expecting so much empowerment from Lori Goldstein’s Screen Queens and it was there….in the last 20 percent of the book.
Girls have so many stereotypes thrust upon them. I guess I just wish we could start having books where the characters don’t have to play into those stereotypes at the beginning and learn to be better by the end. In this day and age, so many girls are rejecting all of the pre-conceived notions people have about them and saying that it’s okay to be who they want to be from the beginning. Why can’t the characters in our books do the same?
The majority of Screen Queens had Lucy, Maddie, and Delia pitting themselves against each other. They were mean, catty, and only looking out for themselves. It wasn’t until the very end of the book that they realized things would be better and they could actually win the competition if they worked together.
The time has passed for us to be telling girls they have to hate each other before they can start forming friendships.
Screen Queens could have been such a monumental story. Girls kicking butt in the STEM industry? We. Need. These. Stories. But they also need to be told the right way. And yes, the ending of this book was great and Goldstein showed her main characters standing up for themselves and accepting nothing less than what they deserved, but the entire thing should have been like that.
Also, hey, not speaking up about your abuser does not make you selfish. That’s such a deeply personal thing and if you aren’t ready in the present moment to talk about it, or even if you’re never ready, that’s okay. Never let anybody dictate how you deal with your trauma.
I don’t even know if anything I’m saying makes sense outside of my brain. I’ve been having the worst time getting my feelings on Screen Queens translated into actual sentences, but this is what I have. If the synopsis grabs your attention, please pick it up! This is probably a classic case of it’s not you, it’s me, and that’s okay.
A digital ARC was provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
Content Warnings: underage drinking, attempted assault, panic attacks
I’m really finding myself to be the black sheep on a ton of popular releases this year and I hate it. I was expecting so much empowerment from Lori Goldstein’s Screen Queens and it was there….in the last 20 percent of the book.
Girls have so many stereotypes thrust upon them. I guess I just wish we could start having books where the characters don’t have to play into those stereotypes at the beginning and learn to be better by the end. In this day and age, so many girls are rejecting all of the pre-conceived notions people have about them and saying that it’s okay to be who they want to be from the beginning. Why can’t the characters in our books do the same?
The majority of Screen Queens had Lucy, Maddie, and Delia pitting themselves against each other. They were mean, catty, and only looking out for themselves. It wasn’t until the very end of the book that they realized things would be better and they could actually win the competition if they worked together.
The time has passed for us to be telling girls they have to hate each other before they can start forming friendships.
Screen Queens could have been such a monumental story. Girls kicking butt in the STEM industry? We. Need. These. Stories. But they also need to be told the right way. And yes, the ending of this book was great and Goldstein showed her main characters standing up for themselves and accepting nothing less than what they deserved, but the entire thing should have been like that.
Also, hey, not speaking up about your abuser does not make you selfish. That’s such a deeply personal thing and if you aren’t ready in the present moment to talk about it, or even if you’re never ready, that’s okay. Never let anybody dictate how you deal with your trauma.
I don’t even know if anything I’m saying makes sense outside of my brain. I’ve been having the worst time getting my feelings on Screen Queens translated into actual sentences, but this is what I have. If the synopsis grabs your attention, please pick it up! This is probably a classic case of it’s not you, it’s me, and that’s okay.
A digital ARC was provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
March 12, 2019
THIS BOOK. I loved this book so much. The plot, was honestly so interesting. I was super invested in how their app was doing. Was it going to work? Were they going to get it done in time? And the process that they went through of developing the app was really interesting. I adored the friendship between the three girls; especially the fact that they didn't start out friends. They are all very different people, but over time, as they met adversity together, and began to collaborate together, they really bonded and became very close, which I think is awesome. Plus, there was the story of all three of them working together to succeed at valley start, and they each had their own individual stories. Each girl had her own struggle, her own thing that she was working through, a different reason she needed to succeed at valley start. Plus, I just loved getting to see these awesome girls in STEM. I loved getting to see a book that was about powerful women in STEM, where they supported to each other, and actively talked about the issues they faced. I loved that they met barriers because of this, but it also wasn't all the source of conflict. There was one plot point that I saw coming from a mile away, but I wouldn't say that it made me dislike the book any less. In fact, when there was the direct build up to the conflict and I knew what was going to happen, it made me rightly nervous. The only complaint I would have is that I think it could have been even more diverse. We had three main characters, two of whom were white, and all of whom were straight. There could have been slightly more diversity on that front, and I think it's something the author can keep in mind for the future. However, all in all, I can't do anything but recommend this book to you. It was so fun to read, while also being engaging and touching on serious topics.
January 2, 2020
Can I repeat it any more times: I'm a sucker for books with female empowerment and feminist themes. Add in a cool concept - in this case, a five-week tech competition, and I couldn't not enjoy this. The character development throughout, and for all three main girls, was realistic and also satisfying, and in the same way, their development helped to explain the traits they harboured at the beginning of the book. I loved the slow-ish burn way in which the girls began trusting each other, and how they utilised the support of other strong characters around them to flourish.
This book addresses sexism in STEM, and specifically computer technology; casual sexual abuse; and how privilege influences success. It was fun and liberating at times, yet frustrating to hear all-too-real stories of women undermined due to their gender. I think it perfectly combines light-heartedness with representing a major issue in the industry, and makes it accessible to the audience. The coding and business jargon was not too complex or niche to understand, but still showed that the topics were well researched.
A great book to start of the 2020 reading year! Hopefully it sets the tone for the rest of it :^)
This book addresses sexism in STEM, and specifically computer technology; casual sexual abuse; and how privilege influences success. It was fun and liberating at times, yet frustrating to hear all-too-real stories of women undermined due to their gender. I think it perfectly combines light-heartedness with representing a major issue in the industry, and makes it accessible to the audience. The coding and business jargon was not too complex or niche to understand, but still showed that the topics were well researched.
A great book to start of the 2020 reading year! Hopefully it sets the tone for the rest of it :^)
September 1, 2019
This is what I needed. A fun novel. There are real issues in this book but it fun read. I like that not everything was so black and white and there was a smart guy allie in this. Hes a side characters and not one of the authority figures but yeah. To often stuff like this become more about ripping men down rather then bring women up. Yes it's can be a fight to break into those boys clubs and yes there are a lot of jerks. But dont give up. This isnt what I thought it'd be. But I enjoyed it.
December 12, 2018
Sassy and fun. I was lucky enough to read an early copy and this book made me cheer for sisterhood. The future is definitely female!
December 21, 2019
yes ma’am!
June 16, 2019
So I'm not sure what really made me decide to do the blog tour for this book. I think part of it was the cover, I do enjoy friend group books. I also think the title drew me in as well. Also the topic of girls in the tech industry is not something I really see in books so I wanted to dive more into that. I do have to say I ended up enjoying this book more than I thought I would.
So the story is about three girls, Lucy, Maddie, and Delia. They are the first ever all female team that could win this high school tech incubator competition that they've been accepted to. They each have different personalities and different family backgrounds that are explored in this book. The one thing they do have in common is they came to win. This book takes you through the high and lows that they face during this competition. They must learn that in order to succeed they have to stick together.
The first thing I really enjoyed about this story is the three main characters. The story is told from their different perspectives which I ended up really liking. You get to learn more and more about each character every time their chapter pops up. They are all unique in their own way. They each have their different talents that they bring to the table. I was never confused about who was who. They also came from different family backgrounds which I enjoyed. Not only are they dealing with the stress of the competition but they each have different family dilemmas throughout the book. It was nice seeing the development in both throughout the story. I really ended up enjoying both aspects.
Another thing I really enjoyed is the tech aspect of the book. So the competition they are in is called Valleystart. They have to come up with an app in 5 weeks. If they win then they get an internship at Pulse. Pulse is a social media website where you are rated 1-10. 10 is the highest you can be and those people get a ton of different perks. This reminded me a lot of the Black Mirror episode called, Nosedive. Anyway you get to read about them going through the process of creating the app and even beta testing it. There are a lot of ups and down in this process but I did end up loving the end result.
I think the only thing I didn't really like about this book is there were a couple of times I found things to be a bit slow. That's fine but I just wanted things to move a long a bit faster. I also found myself a bit confused at times with who was talking. There would be times characters were having conversations with each other and then I'd lose track of who was talking. This might just also be because I had an e-arc of this book so the formatting wasn't perfect.
Overall I thought this was an enjoyable read. It wasn't something I normally would have picked up but I am glad I did because I liked it more than I thought. It had a lot of great characters, modern day topics, and lots of empowerment. I think if this book sounds interesting to you that it's worth checking out.
*Thank you so much to the publishers for providing me a free copy of this book in exchange for my honest review*
So the story is about three girls, Lucy, Maddie, and Delia. They are the first ever all female team that could win this high school tech incubator competition that they've been accepted to. They each have different personalities and different family backgrounds that are explored in this book. The one thing they do have in common is they came to win. This book takes you through the high and lows that they face during this competition. They must learn that in order to succeed they have to stick together.
The first thing I really enjoyed about this story is the three main characters. The story is told from their different perspectives which I ended up really liking. You get to learn more and more about each character every time their chapter pops up. They are all unique in their own way. They each have their different talents that they bring to the table. I was never confused about who was who. They also came from different family backgrounds which I enjoyed. Not only are they dealing with the stress of the competition but they each have different family dilemmas throughout the book. It was nice seeing the development in both throughout the story. I really ended up enjoying both aspects.
Another thing I really enjoyed is the tech aspect of the book. So the competition they are in is called Valleystart. They have to come up with an app in 5 weeks. If they win then they get an internship at Pulse. Pulse is a social media website where you are rated 1-10. 10 is the highest you can be and those people get a ton of different perks. This reminded me a lot of the Black Mirror episode called, Nosedive. Anyway you get to read about them going through the process of creating the app and even beta testing it. There are a lot of ups and down in this process but I did end up loving the end result.
I think the only thing I didn't really like about this book is there were a couple of times I found things to be a bit slow. That's fine but I just wanted things to move a long a bit faster. I also found myself a bit confused at times with who was talking. There would be times characters were having conversations with each other and then I'd lose track of who was talking. This might just also be because I had an e-arc of this book so the formatting wasn't perfect.
Overall I thought this was an enjoyable read. It wasn't something I normally would have picked up but I am glad I did because I liked it more than I thought. It had a lot of great characters, modern day topics, and lots of empowerment. I think if this book sounds interesting to you that it's worth checking out.
*Thank you so much to the publishers for providing me a free copy of this book in exchange for my honest review*
June 21, 2019
3.5 Stars!
Silicon Valley. A place of myth and legend and dreams that became reality- not through wands and fairy dust but through innovation and iteration.
Screen Queens is a book which, deals with the disparity that exists between the male and female gender in the tech industry. Following the story of three young woman this book does a fantastic job in portraying the various circumstances and predicaments that women have to face in the tech industry or I suppose any industry that is male dominant.
The three main protagonists, Lucy, Maddie and Delia, all comes from different background with a different kind of upbringing but the three of them have one thing in common- their will to succeed in their respective fields. Therefore, when they are put in one team together in the country's most elite incubator program, ValleyStart and that too the only all-female team among the sea of men, the stakes are raised higher than they excepted. Now, Lucy, Maddie and Delia will have to give their absolute best if they want to win. But, the next five weeks of their lives are no bed of roses and as challenge upon challenge are thrown at their faces, the girls must learn to trust in their abilities and trust each other, not just for the sake of winning the competition and securing the internship but also, for the sake of empowering themselves against the men, who will stop at nothing to bring them down.
This book has a very slow start and therefore, it took me a while before I could really get invested in the story and the lives of these three girls but at some 30% mark, the story picked up and I was hooked. I loved the setting and I think the author did a superb job in integrating both the positive and negative nature of the tech industry and Silicon Valley. This is a place where dreams come true for so many tech nerds but the question is at what cost? and especially, if that person is a woman. Screen Queens addresses relevant topics likes sexism, racism and the vices of social media. While social media definitely has its benefits, it can't be denied that somewhere it is also gnawing our society from within by having a huge cultural influence on its users, especially, the younger generations and this book does such a fabulous job in depicting just that.
Apart from that, Screen Queens has a lot of diversity in both cultural and economical sense. Maddie is biracial and their is an American-Indian representation in the form of the girls mentor, Nishi Kapoor, with whom I fell in love with. At the heart of it all, this book is so much about female friendship, solidarity and empowerment. I loved the fact that even though, these girls had to face so many brutal challenges, both on professional and personal front, they never gave up, they improvised, they supported each other and they made a bang-on come back each time.
Initially, I didn't really liked Lucy and Maddie but they eventually grew on me. I liked Delia best, she is such a sweetheart and I connected most with her but I can't deny that I admired Lucy's confidence and Maddie's perseverance. Both Lucy and Maddie never really had any friends and it was wonderful to read how they slowly discovered the power of women looking out for other women. The relationship among these girls evolved over time and turned into something really beautiful. At the end, I was glad that they remained together and showed the world the true meaning of "Girl Power".
I did have a few timeline issues here and there and sometimes the writing felt a little uneven. In addition, the whole idea behind PULSE, strongly reminded me of an episode of Black Mirror,whose name I am unable to recall but other than that, I think, Screen Queens makes for a lovely summer read, what with ambitious young women, heart-warming friendships and lots and lots of female empowerment.
ARC provided by NetGalley and Fantastic Flying Book Club in exchange of my honest opinion.
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Silicon Valley. A place of myth and legend and dreams that became reality- not through wands and fairy dust but through innovation and iteration.
Screen Queens is a book which, deals with the disparity that exists between the male and female gender in the tech industry. Following the story of three young woman this book does a fantastic job in portraying the various circumstances and predicaments that women have to face in the tech industry or I suppose any industry that is male dominant.
The three main protagonists, Lucy, Maddie and Delia, all comes from different background with a different kind of upbringing but the three of them have one thing in common- their will to succeed in their respective fields. Therefore, when they are put in one team together in the country's most elite incubator program, ValleyStart and that too the only all-female team among the sea of men, the stakes are raised higher than they excepted. Now, Lucy, Maddie and Delia will have to give their absolute best if they want to win. But, the next five weeks of their lives are no bed of roses and as challenge upon challenge are thrown at their faces, the girls must learn to trust in their abilities and trust each other, not just for the sake of winning the competition and securing the internship but also, for the sake of empowering themselves against the men, who will stop at nothing to bring them down.
This book has a very slow start and therefore, it took me a while before I could really get invested in the story and the lives of these three girls but at some 30% mark, the story picked up and I was hooked. I loved the setting and I think the author did a superb job in integrating both the positive and negative nature of the tech industry and Silicon Valley. This is a place where dreams come true for so many tech nerds but the question is at what cost? and especially, if that person is a woman. Screen Queens addresses relevant topics likes sexism, racism and the vices of social media. While social media definitely has its benefits, it can't be denied that somewhere it is also gnawing our society from within by having a huge cultural influence on its users, especially, the younger generations and this book does such a fabulous job in depicting just that.
Apart from that, Screen Queens has a lot of diversity in both cultural and economical sense. Maddie is biracial and their is an American-Indian representation in the form of the girls mentor, Nishi Kapoor, with whom I fell in love with. At the heart of it all, this book is so much about female friendship, solidarity and empowerment. I loved the fact that even though, these girls had to face so many brutal challenges, both on professional and personal front, they never gave up, they improvised, they supported each other and they made a bang-on come back each time.
Initially, I didn't really liked Lucy and Maddie but they eventually grew on me. I liked Delia best, she is such a sweetheart and I connected most with her but I can't deny that I admired Lucy's confidence and Maddie's perseverance. Both Lucy and Maddie never really had any friends and it was wonderful to read how they slowly discovered the power of women looking out for other women. The relationship among these girls evolved over time and turned into something really beautiful. At the end, I was glad that they remained together and showed the world the true meaning of "Girl Power".
I did have a few timeline issues here and there and sometimes the writing felt a little uneven. In addition, the whole idea behind PULSE, strongly reminded me of an episode of Black Mirror,whose name I am unable to recall but other than that, I think, Screen Queens makes for a lovely summer read, what with ambitious young women, heart-warming friendships and lots and lots of female empowerment.
ARC provided by NetGalley and Fantastic Flying Book Club in exchange of my honest opinion.
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August 11, 2023
I really liked the idea of this book and it was enjoyable at times. I loved the idea of 3 young women fighting for what they believe in in a male dominated and often toxic field. I also liked the characters. However, the book was told from each of the 3 girls POVs and they were written in 3rd person, with no indication at the beginning of the chapters for which character was being focused on. So I often got confused on who the focus of that chapter was and was constantly getting their past and present information mixed up. I'm not sure if this confusion was because of the writing itself or because I was listening to the audiobook, which only had one narrator. But overall not a bad read and recommend checking it out especially if you like reading about women in STEM, specifically tech.
Personal side note: the 3 girls roomed together in room 303. when I was in collage I liked with 2 other girls in room 303! It just brought back some fond memories.
Content warning: sexual harassment, sexism
Personal side note: the 3 girls roomed together in room 303. when I was in collage I liked with 2 other girls in room 303! It just brought back some fond memories.
Content warning: sexual harassment, sexism
June 24, 2022
The book started off slow for me. I found the characters not believable for a lot of it. Some parts they seemed to act too grown up to be the ages they were, and other times they appeared to be immature. It was a weird, uneven balance. While I'm not one who has interest in coding, I saw the importance of the books underlying theme. Yes, it was about 3 girls and how they embraced a competition and grew together because of it, but I have to say the main theme was coding. The last few chapters is where the story really picked up for me. It had the most depth. I feel like this book is better suited for tweens and teens, especially the message it sends to girls. There were a lot of good points made in a round about way, of social media, and it's obviously an encouragement to get girls into coding and computer sciences.
September 27, 2020
Great read in getting young adult girls to not only embrace the idea of empowerment at an early age and that their views, actions, and intelligence have a strong place in this world but also that friendship can sometimes come in unlikely places and it can be worth getting to know others that might not be "exactly" like you because it can help you grow as a person and find happiness in unexpected ways. Lots of great themes for young girls who are trying to figure out their path: recognizing that computer science, technology, and coding are for girls, too; communicating with parents and adults when you start to find your voice; staying focused and working hard; empowering friendship; and being aware of sexual pressures and harassment and how to speak up.
And, it's always a joy to read a novel written by a personal friend! Can't wait to read her latest, Sources Say!
And, it's always a joy to read a novel written by a personal friend! Can't wait to read her latest, Sources Say!
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