Goths sit with goths, punk rockers with punk rockers. The scene: I’m in an auditorium with, maybe, fifty other wannabes, trying out for the musical theater program at Miami High School of the Arts. But first, I have to get through this audition.Īnd-wouldn’t you know it-there’s a wad of phlegm stuck in my throat.

It’s about singing, about getting flowers thrown onstage-about being brilliant. But being a diva’s a lot more than just being a rich grrrl. I’m such a diva! they say, as they’re rubbing your nose in some five-hundred-dollar shoes their daddy bought them. Lots of girls I know call themselves divas. Diva is a good-stand alone book, but also a great companion read with Breathing Underwater. We feel for her and relate to her, but Caitlyn seems to believe she is alone in these universal feelings. Caitlyn's fears and doubts about herself and her talents as she moves to a new school are evident, and it is on this score that the book succeeds. Caitlyn struggles with the morality of this, as well as her mother's wish to be seen as Caitlyn's sister rather than her mom. Caitlyn's mom dates a married man- a rich doctor- with the hopes of luring him away from a wife he doesn't like. Nick is a minor character but still looms large for Caitlyn as she occassionally runs into him and is reminded of their abusive relationship. This is essentially a tale of self-discovery for a number of characters, most especially Caitlyn.

The narrative switches back and forth from a first-person narrative, emails, and blog entries from Caitlyn's online alter-ego, Opera_Grrrl. She secretly auditions for a spot at a Miami High School for the Arts, which would keep her from running into Nick, get her away from the friends she knows are real friends, and give her some space from her divorced and cranky mother. What she really wants to do- but no one can understand- is sing opera. She's been to the 'fat farm' over the summer where she lost 30 pounds, and is still weight-obsessed. Caitlyn, the girlfriend who got beat up in Alex Flinn's Breathing Underwater, still has issues with ex-boyfriend Nick and the group of fake friends she inherited when she began dating him.

Diva alex flinn