February 25, 2022
When You Get the Chance by Emma Lord
Genre/Categories/Setting: Young Adult Contemporary Fiction, Musical Theater, Coming of Age, New York City
*This post contains Amazon affiliate links.
My Summary:
Millie Price is a high school senior and is obsessed with musical theater. In her determination to follow her dream, she applies to a competitive program that will jumpstart her career as a Broadway star. Her usually supportive father is against the idea and won’t sign the paperwork. Millie has been raised by her single dad and her bio mom has never been a part of her life. So, Millie plans to find her bio mom who works in theater so she can persuade her to sign the papers. (even though she has no legal guardianship of Millie and Millie doesn’t even know her name….so suspension of disbelief is required here). At the same time, Millie is also persuing a summer internship in the theater world. Competing for the same internship is Oliver her rival from drama club. Will Millie secure the internship? Will she get the signature she needs to finalize her acceptance into the elite program? Will she find her bio mom? And what about Oliver?
My Thoughts:
Determined to follow a dream…
All the DRAMA! Inspired by Mama Mia, When You Get the Chance contains many references to musical theater and a great deal of drama off the stage including securing a competitive internship position, finding a bio mom, developing a romantic crush on a rival, going behind dad’s back, and testing friendships.
Musical Theater: If you were a theater kid or know a theater kid, you might enjoy this heartfelt story. Throughout the reading, I felt compelled to schedule a rewatch of Mama Mia!
YA Author Love! I enjoy an occassional YA read! Emma Lord is one of my trusted YA authors. Her stories are fast paced, engaging, and appropriate for young adult readers. The writing is snappy and feels a bit like your cool aunt is writing the story. My favorite of her three published works is Tweet Cute with this one running a close second.
Recommended: If you enjoy a YA read or you are buying for a young adult reader, I enthusiastically recommend When You Get the Chance and Tweet Cute. I’m especially recommending When You Get a Chance for theater kids!
Content Consideration: a teenager looking for a bio mom
My Rating: 4 Stars
When You Get the Chance Information Here
Meet the Author, Emma Lord
Emma Lord is a digital media editor and writer living in New York City, where she spends whatever time she isn’t writing either running or belting show tunes in community theater. She graduated from the University of Virginia with a major in psychology and a minor in how to tilt your computer screen so nobody will notice you updating your fan fiction from the back row. She was raised on glitter, lots of love, and a copious amount of grilled cheese.
QOTD:
Is When You Get the Chance on your TBR or have you read it?
Are you a fan of YA?
Happy Reading Book Buddies!
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I have a great-nephew & granddaughter that are theater-obsessed. I’ll be checking this book out for gifts.
How old? I think it would appeal to most teenagers! It’s hard to find appropriate content for that age group!
They are 17 & 13. I thought I should read it before the 13 yo.
Great idea to preview the book! Enjoy! You could also buy them a copy of Mama Mia!
I hadn’t even thought about a copy of Mama Mia. Thanks for the suggestion
I don’t read much young adult fiction, but would like to. This one sounds fun. You mentioned that Emma Lord’s writing is snappy – that is just the impression I got from looking at the cover. Good to find an author you can trust.
Ruta Sepetys is another author I like for YA fiction of the more serious histfic genre.
I love your Author Love paragraph, it sounds great!
She writes fun YA stories! Tweet Cute is my fav!
I don’t read a lot of YA either, but I did enjoy this story. It was fun, but also had some issues and angst. Great review Carol. Funny, I rewatched Mama Mia after reading this book. 😊
Yes! I just told my husband that we need a rewatch this weekend!
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