Shooting Stars by Allison Rushby

Title & Author:
Shooting Stars by Allison Rushby
Publisher:
Walker Children’s
Publication Date:
February 28, 2012
Pages:
272
Source:
NetGalley

Meet Josephine Foster, or Zo Jo as she’s called in the biz. The best pint-sized photographer of them all, Jo doesn’t mind doing what it takes to get that perfect shot, until she’s sent on an undercover assignment to shoot Ned Hartnett—teen superstar and the only celebrity who’s ever been kind to her—at an exclusive rehabilitation retreat in Boston. The money will be enough to pay for Jo’s dream: real photography classes, and maybe even quitting her paparazzi gig for good. Everyone wants to know what Ned’s in for. But Jo certainly doesn’t know what she’s in for: falling in love with Ned was never supposed to be part of her assignment. – Goodreads

Shooting Stars by Allison Rushby was a cute and fun read. I’m one of those people who loves to gush over my latest celebrity crush, so I really liked the whole taking-pictures-of-celebrities bit of Shooting Stars, even though my moral compass basically aligns with Jo’s, the protagonists.

I liked Jo a lot. She was snarky and determined and had a very interesting life. And Jo’s guilt over what she does to make her money was probably my favourite aspect of Shooting Stars, besides the kissing.

It just felt so real. I mean, maybe not the teenage paparazzo part, but if I were a paparazzo, I’d feel like crap about what I was doing too. But she had such good reasons for doing it that I was kind of struggling along with her deciding what was wrong and what was right.

It did take me a little while to buy into the whole idea behind Shooting Stars. I don’t know much about the lives of paparazzi, but I do know that most parents wouldn’t essentially live in another country and be cool with their kid pretending they needed help at a retreat to make 60 grand. (Well, actually. 60 grand? Count me in.)

And there’s a twist in Shooting Stars. A twist I didn’t see coming but made the whole story a lot more interesting.

Overall, Shooting Stars was cute and fun, but some of the characters had a surprising amount of depth. Shooting Stars wasn’t necessarily a book that will stay with me for all time, but I did enjoy reading it. Check it out if you’re in the mood for a contemp that’s sure to lighten your mood!

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