Review: Nikki and Deja: Wedding Drama by Karen English (Cybils Nominee)

To contact us Click HERE
Nikki and Deja: Wedding Drama. by Karen English. March 20, 2012. Clarion Books. 112 pages. ISBN: 9780547615646

Nikki and Deja are so excited about their teacher’s upcoming wedding, especially when they learn that two lucky students will be chosen to attend. When their names are the ones picked, they are even more thrilled, until Deja realizes how expensive wedding gifts and outfits can be, and Nikki can’t understand why her best friend isn’t getting into the marriage spirit.

This the first book I have read in this series, but from what I could tell, it seems to have a lot of things going for it. It focuses on best friends, which is a popular topic in mid-elementary school. It includes a diverse cast of characters, and it’s set in an urban community. The characters’ personalities and interests seem real, and even the wedding theme is appealing to the intended audience.

My only problem was buying into the storyline itself. I just could not believe that a teacher would invite students to her wedding and expect them to bring gifts, especially when one of the guest’s families is enduring economic hardship. In the back of my mind, I kept thinking about how stressful a situation like that would be for a child, and it kept me from becoming immersed in the story. Other aspects of the book were wonderful - the classroom competition to create the best menu, flowers and dress was a particular highlight - but I really expected the teacher to step in at some point and alleviate the girls’ stressful expectations about her wedding, and that never happened.

I really think I need to read more books from this series so I can understand this most recent addition in the proper context. For now, though, this book is just okay for me, and memorable only because of the things that got under my skin.

I borrowed Nikki and Deja: Wedding Drama from my local public library. 

For more about this book, visit Goodreads and Worldcat. 

NOTE: This book was nominated by kelstarly for the 2012 Cybils Awards in the Easy Reader/Early Chapter Book category. I am a first-round panelist in this category, but this review reflects my opinions only, not those of any other panelist, or the panel as a whole. Thanks!