Although I have read books by C. Lee McKenzie before, this was the first YA book by her that I’ve read. I didn't have any idea what to expect with The Princess of Las Pulgas, and I was completely thrilled with my reading experience. Carlie is a character who is in a new situation trying to figure out how to act and how to not get on people's bad lists. She's also piecing together what happens to friendships that might not have been as strong as she thought they were. I liked seeing how Carlie learned who and what was important to her and also what really didn't matter. She may not have been a princess, but she definitely had a pampered lifestyle before she moved to Las Pulgas. Readers get to watch Carlie grow and learn. I could relate to her because she was misunderstood by many people because of the wall she put up to protect herself from her own feelings about her father's death. This book made me laugh and cry. I couldn't put it down until I finished because I had to know how everything turned out for Carlie and her family. If you haven't read this book- I highly recommend you grab a copy. ( )

This was fantastic. SO touching and beautifully written.

More thorough review to come. ( )

If you’ve ever lost a family member, you know how devastating it is and how your whole life changes. Then, if circumstances cause you to have to leave the home you’ve grown up in and live in a new place totally different to what you’re used to, it’s understandable that you’ll be bitter and hate your new life. At least at first.

Author C. Lee McKenzie’s latest novel for young adults, The Princess of Las Pulgas, deals with such a situation. When Carlie Edmund’s father dies, she loses not only the father that she loves but also her home and her friends. Unable to afford their expensive beach house any longer, Carlie’s mother sells it and they move to Las Pulgas, the worst place in the universe Carlie can imagine living. Even the cat, Quicken, is upset and runs away. Carlie and her younger brother, Keith, also have to attend a new school where Juan, the boy with the big smile, gives her the nickname Princess because she acts like royalty. Carlie has a lot to learn about the students in her new school as well as her old friends from Channing. And along the way little whispers in her heart remind Carlie of advice her father gave her. To me, these whispers show how close Carlie and her father were and how she is hurting for him.

Ms. McKenzie has written a touching story about love and loss, family and friends, and how we can misjudge people when we don’t really know them. This book would make a great addition to school libraries to help students that may be going through a situation similar to Carlie’s and also for your own personal library.

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Poor Carlie. After watching her father slowly die of cancer, a move across town might seem trivial; upsetting, but trivial. Fights with her mom, not getting asked out, rude neighbors, or a "pushy" English teacher (in the Tina Fey Mean Girls way) might also seem trivial. But all together? Carlie is helplessly watching her life fall apart around her.

Carlie's main problem with her new life in Las Pulgas is all the "poor people," as she sees them. Almost everything she dislikes about the people around her can be attributed to, in Carlie's mind, the fact that they are poor, or at least more poor and classless than the people she used to know. Even though Carlie and her family are in Las Pulgas because of financial problems, she doesn't see anything that she could have in common with her new neighbors and classmates. She puts on a tough front, but it's pretty obvious (to everyone) that she's just scared. She holds herself apart both because she feels she's better than those around her and also because the kids at her high school terrify her, something they pick up on all too easily. Eventually she makes a couple friends, but there is no Big Lesson about class consciousness. ::sigh of relief::

And through all of this growing and learning on Carlie's part, there are play rehearsals. The junior class is putting on Othello, and Carlie has been cast, against her will, as Desdemona. Opposite smokin' hot Juan. And Juan, very sweetly, refuses to take Carlie's crap. He calls her out on her assumptions about her classmates and about him. He drives her nuts (in good and bad ways), but he also protects her from some of her other, scarier, problems at Las Pulgas High.

For a while, this pile-up of problems distracts Carlie from the pain of losing her father. It's not as though she forgets about him or even stops being sad. She's just dealing with all of this other things first. But her father's advice keeps sounding in her head telling her to be strong, something she doesn't know if she can do anymore. When she finally faces her feelings about her father (with the help the scene in which Desdemona must say goodbye to her father), it is so real.

The Princess of Las Pulgas is an honest look at how Carlie deals with huge upheavals in her life, both a huge change of lifestyle and the death of her father. It still manages to be a suspenseful, romantic, and uplifting read.

Book source: ARC provided by the publisher. ( )

The Princess of Las Pulgas by C. Lee McKenzie
We are hit hard right from the start in Princess. Emotions are running high and they stay that way.
I really appreciate how the passing of time is dictated: with sorrow at the holidays; remembrance and grieving for what they lost.
Some of the wording is so lyrical- ‘wrapped in a cocoon of grief”, “when I read what I just wrote, some letters aren’t clear. Even though I’ve turned a new page, the tears have made the surface rough, so Oct 22nd has bled through to a new day.” It makes me feel even more connected with Carlie.
I haven’t lost a parent but I have felt like my whole world has turned itself upside down and my heart broken. I can identify with Carlie in that respect. Her voice is powerful, emotional, and heart-felt. She is sarcastic and throws in dark humor at the right moments. I could stay in her head all day.
I really adore the voice of her Dad as she is dealing with stuff. It really shows me without tons of back-story how he loved her, taught her things, and made a huge impact on her life. I also love seeing the moments with her mom. They do not have a perfect relationship but it is good and normal. Well, as normal as can be expected. They fight, but ultimately they love one another and are there for each other. It is nice to see a parent/child relationship that is functional and what you may see in the real world. It doesn’t dominate the book, but it is there. I like it.
I love the secondary cast of characters- K.T., Keith, Jeb, Mr. Smith, Anthony, Sean. They all have something wonderful and unique to bring to this story. They have their own personalities and they are wonderfully written. Juan is a man in disguise but I really like what is revealed underneath.
PoLP is a heart-wrenching tale of loss, recovery, self discovery, and love- familial, friendship and amore. It proves through several avenues that people and places are not what they seem at first glance. I was entranced from page 1 and I flew through, wanting to find out what turn of events would bring, and what Carlie would learn about herself and others next.

One of my favorite quotes:
“Do you remember what I said that day on the auditorium steps about taking the jouney? …What I didn’t say was that many journeys, often ones you didn’t plan to make, take you to an unexpected destination that turns out to be exactly where you want to be.” ( )