REVIEW for Take a Bow

I, once again, owe a huge thank you to the wonderful people at Scholastic Canada for sending me a copy of this book to read and review.


TITLE:                   Take a Bow

AUTHOR:              Elizabeth Eulberg


GENRE:                  YA

Take a Bow was an interesting look at the artistic world and, more specifically, at the artistic temperament, which brings you to great heights, but can also make you forget who you are in the process.

To be honest, I am not sure what I think about this novel.  I can say that it is not what I originally thought it would be.  In fact, Take  a Bow takes a look at 4 students who are currently enrolled at a performing arts school.  Through Emme, Sophie, Carter and Ethan ‘voices’ we get a close up look at what it takes to be ‘the best’ and at what cost.

Each chapter pretty well represents one character and, in alternating voices, we discover their backgrounds, their dreams, their hopes and just how far they are willing to go to get to where they need (want/desire) to be.

I have to admit that I have never been a fan of the ‘alternating voices’ method, which seriously removed the fun for me.  I also thought that the story dragged a little bit at times.

Having said that, I believe the author’s definite strength is the ability to draw characters that are very fleshed out and frankly, in some cases, not all that likeable.

I thought this book was interesting and quite honest, but I have to say that it did not entirely capture my interest throughout.