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Author: Louise Rennison, 2012.
Genre: YA. Chick Lit Comedy.
Other Details: Hardback. 334 pages. Unabridged audio, 5 hours, read by the author.
Tallulah’s triumphant portrayal of Heathcliff in ‘Wuthering Heights’ the comedy musical secured her place at Dother Hall performing arts college for the autumn term. She is excited to see her pals again, as well as Charlie and the boys from Woolfe Academy and maybe even local bad boy Cain Hinchcliffe. Tallulah doesn't board at Dother Hall but lodges in the nearby village with the easy-going Dobbins family, which gives her a greater opportunity to interact with the locals. As the title indicates, this term the school is to put on a production of A Midsummer's Night Dream. Knowing Tallulah she'll find a way to fit in some Irish dancing.
I had adored Withering Tights when I read it last summer (2011 Book 72) and so was keen to get my hands on this second outing for the irrepressible Tallulah and learn more about her misadventures 'p North. The novel is peopled with a variety of eccentric Yorkshire folk along with the pupils and staff of Dother Hall (called Dither Hall by the locals), who represent a variety of theatrical types all ripe for being sent up by Tallulah.
Tallulah and her friends spend a lot of time thinking and talking about boys and this evoked the memory of my own crushes at that age and the sense of confusion that accompanies them. This keen perception on the part of Rennison along with the broad humour and literary references gives her books an appeal across the ages.
I enjoyed this enough to both read and listen to A Midsummer Tights Dream during a recent read-a-thon. It was a quick read (and listen) as the page count is deceptive given its large font size. Again, Louise Rennison's hilarious reading perfectly captured Tallulah's chaotic exuberance.
