Oops-A-Daisy

Book one of The De La Cruz Diaries

Children - Grade 4th-6th
170 Pages
Reviewed on 10/01/2017
Buy on Amazon

This author participates in the Readers' Favorite Free Book Program, which is open to all readers and is completely free. The author will provide you with a free copy of their book in exchange for an honest review. You and the author will discuss what sites you will post your review to and what kind of copy of the book you would like to receive (eBook, PDF, Word, paperback, etc.). To begin, click the purple email icon to send this author a private email.

This author participates in the Readers' Favorite Book Review Exchange Program, which is open to all authors and is completely free. Simply put, you agree to provide an honest review an author's book in exchange for the author doing the same for you. What sites your reviews are posted on (B&N, Amazon, etc.) and whether you send digital (eBook, PDF, Word, etc.) or hard copies of your books to each other for review is up to you. To begin, click the purple email icon to send this author a private email, and be sure to describe your book or include a link to your Readers' Favorite review page or Amazon page.

This author participates in the Readers' Favorite Book Donation Program, which was created to help nonprofit and charitable organizations (schools, libraries, convalescent homes, soldier donation programs, etc.) by providing them with free books and to help authors garner more exposure for their work. This author is willing to donate free copies of their book in exchange for reviews (if circumstances allow) and the knowledge that their book is being read and enjoyed. To begin, click the purple email icon to send this author a private email. Be sure to tell the author who you are, what organization you are with, how many books you need, how they will be used, and the number of reviews, if any, you would be able to provide.

Author Biography

As a vocalist, I performed for a number of years and it's easy to think someone just gets up and sings for 3 minutes and that's all there is to it, but there is a lot of work that goes on behind the scenes. You have to learn your craft. I decided to take a humorous look at a bit of the learning process required to work in the arts, in order to educate and entertain.

    Book Review

Reviewed by Emily-Jane Hills Orford for Readers' Favorite

Daisy De La Cruz desperately wants to be a famous actress. She’s good and she knows it. She has a beautiful voice and wonderful coaches at the school for the arts where she attends. She even has an agent who has helped her land a few commercial gigs. Her best friend, Tamika, also wants to be a star, but she lacks the confidence as well as Daisy’s vast vocal range. Competition is fierce at the school for the arts, and when a new music teacher introduces some novel ideas to his students, the competition just heats up and alliances change. And what middle school Grade 6 drama wouldn’t be complete without a mean girl queen?

There are lessons to learn, though, and Daisy struggles intently with her dream, her desire to maintain her friendships, and her need to understand what’s right and good about both life and the world of acting. Author Melody Delgado has taken the mean girl middle school theme up to another level by introducing the world of highly competitive and often vicious art students. Her middle grade novel, Oops-A-Daisy: The De La Cruz Diaries, takes some rather complicated teenage themes and dramas and weaves them into valuable life lessons. The new music teacher, feared at first for his stern approach, becomes revered, at least by Daisy, as she learns why he insists that their class visit the local homeless shelter to help out. It gives her another perspective on life and what really is important. Although she can and will still dream about her acting career, Daisy has also felt compassion for helping others, both in the acting field and those less fortunate. A powerful story with an important message for young readers.