Book Review: Izzy's Pop Star Plan

Izzy's Pop Star Plan, a book by Alex Marestaing that describes itself as a daily devo that reads like a novel, takes the reader through 90 days of Izzy's steps and missteps on her road to becoming, well, a pop star.  It's set up as though the reader is accessing her blog, which she updates daily.  You meet her family (her mom died when she was younger, and she lives in an apartment in California with her brother and dad), her friends (best friend Maddie and Izzy have a note passing system between their houses that they call Bird Mail), her neighbors (Ms. Adelina, an Argentinian opera star),and  her church and youth group (Pastor Ryan and his wife Stephanie).  You also watch her learn how to make tough choices and navigate many ups and downs in her effort to become a pop star, sometimes more gracefully than others.

I appreciated the excellent use of scripture to support Izzy's problems and decisions.  Every piece of scripture used should be a memory verse for each of us.  It was also apparent that when Izzy was out of the Word and not heeding wise counsel, her life was taking turns for the worse.  Additionally, Izzy ends almost every blog post with 'That's my prayer, what's yours?' which gives the reader a perfect opportunity to reflect and meditate on the scripture and encourages her to pray what's on her heart.

I initially thought this would be a great devotional to read with my eleven year old daughter, but after reading it, I would definitely wait until she's a little older.  The subject matter ranging from the desire to compete in the International Pop Star Challenge (we're not American Idol fans) to dating and first loves is a little too mature for her.  However, I see this as being a must read for us together in the very near future. 

Unfortunatley, I don't think we'll be able to stretch it out for the 90 days the devotional takes!  Even I had a hard time putting the book down after a single entry, wanting to know what will happen next.  It was easy to get wrapped up in Izzy's character and want the best for her.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through the BookSneeze®.com book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255