THE SCHOOL STORY

A fairy tale for the author-wannabe set, THE SCHOOL STORY follows 12-year-old Natalie Nelson as she writes her first novel, somewhat sneakily gets her editor mom to buy it, and goes on to multiple printings and talk show fame. Spencer Kayden (the voice of Mrs. Pepper on Nickelodeon's "Blue's Clues") does a nice job with a variety of characters, from the tyranical editor-in-chief to the fake agent, Natalie's friend, Zoe. There's even a sample scene from THE CHEATER, Natalie's epic opus, which, oddly, sounds like it might be better than THE SCHOOL STORY itself. Clements pays lip service to the idea that it's hard to sell a book, but this belies his words. M.C. (c) AudioFile 2002, Portland, Maine [Published: JUN/JUL 02]