It's not about the accent (edition 2007)

Reviewed by Jaglvr for TeensReadToo.com

How would you like to be able to reinvent yourself? That's exactly what Caroline Darcy does. The summer after graduation, she enrolls in a session at the University of Southern Ohio before her freshman fall semester. Once away from home, she decides to embrace her Cuban roots (all 1/8th of those roots) and become Carolina for the summer. She purchases a new upbeat wardrobe and dyes her blonder hair Havana brown. On her first evening at USO, she attends a getting-to-know-you dance, and immediately attracts the attention of Erik, a senior. She also meets Peter, another new student.

Little does she know that the two guys would be so involved in her life that summer. Erik sweeps her off her feet and she enjoys being Carolina for a while. But being someone she isn't turns out to be more exhausting than she expects.

After a serious encounter one night while waiting for Erik to show up, Caroline reevaluates her life, gives up the idea of following her Cuban roots and her friendship with Peter, and runs back home after the summer session is over. With a shove from her older brother, Caroline returns to USO for the fall, her friendship with Peter solidifies, and she takes on a new quest. With the help of Peter and two different university professors, Caroline researches her actual family history. The research takes her places she didn't imagine, both literally and figuratively.

This is the story of one girl's journey to discover who she is. Caroline goes from one extreme to the other, until she finally gets the balance just right. With the help of wonderful friends and family, Caroline finally figures out just where she belongs, and who she belongs with.

IT'S NOT ABOUT THE ACCENT is another great addition from the MTV line of books by Simon & Schuster. As with all the other books I have read from this division, the story developed quickly and pulled me right into the pages. Ms. Ferrer writes a thought-provoking and oftentimes fun story as Caroline tries to discover who she really is.

(FYI: Content is not appropriate for the younger reader.) ( )

Twitter review @book_kungfu (http://twitter.com/book_kungfu):
Exotic on the outside = exotic on the inside? Latina makes herself over and discovers herself. -- Kung Fu moment: knee-to-jerk action ( )

Caroline Darcy wants more than her boring small-town Ohio life, so when she goes off to college, she reinvents herself, using her Cuban great-grandmother as a role model, speaking Spanish, and calling herself "Carolina."

Her first day, she meets two guys: frat boy Erik, who finds her exotic; and quiet, serious Peter, who's half-Cuban himself.

She starts dating Erik and becomes close friends with Peter, and her best friend back home keeps telling her to give up the charade, but it just never seems to be the right time.

Then disaster strikes, Peter comes to her rescue, and with his encouragement, she starts researching Nana Ellie's life and discovers herself in the process.

Although I'm more than a couple decades older than Caroline, she's very easy to relate to. I vividly remember reinventing myself when I went off to college, as I'm sure a lot of us did. It's the perfect time to do so, and a time in your life where you're trying on different identities. I wasn't quite as brave and bold as Caroline, but I could understand how she felt.

What's best about Accent is how real it feels. More than once, I laughed aloud, and more than once I had tears running down my face--not just a lump in my throat, but actual tears. The characters are vivid and 3-dimensional. Even the ones who aren't heroes (trying to avoid spoilers) aren't all bad--they're human and understandable, and people you might meet.

Barb's an outstanding writer, and I'm looking forward to whatever she writes next, regardless of the genre. She has a gift for bringing characters to life. ( )