The Real Real

Written by Emma McLaughlin

Narrated by Mandy Siegfried

The bestselling authors of The Nanny Diaries introduce a new heroine to root for: Jesse O'Rourke, coffee barista, high school senior, and unwitting reality TV star.

Imagine there was never a Laguna Beach, a Newport Harbor, the shimmering Hills. Imagine that your hometown—your school—is the first place XTV descends to set up cameras.

Now imagine they've trained them on you.

When Jesse O'Rourke gets picked for a ""documentary"" being filmed at her school in the Hamptons she's tempted to turn down the offer. But there's a tuition check attached to being on the show, and Jesse needs the cash so she can be the first in her family to attend college. All she has to do is trade her best friend for the glam clique she's studiously avoided, her privacy for a 24/7 mike, and her sense of right and wrong for ""what sells on camera."" . . . At least there's one bright spot in the train wreck that is her suddenly public senior year: Jesse's crush has also made the cast.

As the producers manipulate the lives of their ""characters"" to heighten the drama, and Us Weekly covers become a regular occurrence for Jesse, she must struggle to remember one thing: the difference between real and the real real.

• Language: English
• Publisher: HarperCollins
• Release date: May 19, 2009
• ISBN: 9780061788086

Emma McLaughlin

Emma McLaughlin and Nicola Kraus are the New York Times bestselling authors of The Nanny Diaries, Citizen Girl, Nanny Returns, and the young adult novels, The Real Real and Over You. They are the cofounders of TheFinishedThought.com, a book coaching firm, and work together in New York City. For more information visit EmmaAndNicola.com.

Reviews for The Real Real

[taranator-1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

A fun read, though not for everyone. I liked it.

[brandisbookmusings · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

When I found this book I was so excited about the subject matter and the fact that it was on Amazon bargain books didn't hurt. I am going to tell you all a secret. I am addicted to a certain reality show that features men and women who keep the bronzer making people in business. The Real Real gives a peak into what the lives of these so called "reality TV" stars might be like. Jesse is a character who has her life turned upside down by the TV industry. Her and her parents are drawn in by the money that will allow her to go to college and they are basically "owned" by the TV station until her contract is up. During this time she makes questionable decisions, but she is a teen who is thrust into these manipulative situations. Through the authors' writing it was amazing to see how quickly and without provocation people who both know and don't know these teens turn on them. I really enjoyed this book and it made me at least, kind of feel sorry for people of celebrity. The only thing that I found questionable, or just thought didn't jive was the reaction of Jesse's best friend when she doesn't make the show and Jesse does. Maybe I hold people to a higher standard, but when your best friend in the world gets the chance to pay for college you don't hate them for their good fortune. The other thing is the lack of her parent's involvement. They seemed close at the beginning of the book, but they sort of drop off until the ...crap hits the fan. There is a letter/message that the mom writes to Jesse that I just couldn't believe. I am a huge defendant of Jesse and felt so sorry for her. I absolutely loved this book.

[thedreamerreader · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Wow, I will never look at reality television the same way again.The Good: It's just SO creative and unique and just fantastic. The idea is very pop culture-ish, but unlike the really pop culture-ish books, readers will be able to read this book over and over again. Kudos for the authors for writing such an entertaining book!And the reason it's so entertaining is because Jesse is an awesome main character! Not only is she sassy, she's funny, smart, and just your average teenage girl.Sure she's made some really stupid choices, but that only makes her that more relatable. Another thing that I adore about her is that, even through all the crap that's been thrown at her, she's still the same down to earth girl that makes me want to be her best friend.Another character that I loved was Drew. He was just so funny and sweet, and he never acts out of character just because he wants to get his own fan club or something. Another thing, the characters are just so well developed!Even though I hated some characters, I understood them and I knew where they were coming from. And for the characters that I loved, I cheered them on and though sometimes I wanted to slap them for being such retards, I still really liked them.One more thing, I came into the book thinking about the characters in a certain way, but when I finished The Real Real, my perspective of them has totally changed. I'll let you decide if it's for the better or worse ;)Basically, I'd totally become a screaming fan girl for any of them (except Trisha and maybe Caitlyn). But still... FAN-FREAKING-TASTIC characters. They are definitely the real real.The Bad: These aren't really bad things, but... some chapters that left me going, "What was that?" I've had to re-read things more than two times to get it, and it's not because I'm slow or anything. Also, the transitions to different scenes are kind of confusing. So, as exciting as it gets, read the book slowly. Well, at least in the beginning.Overall: The Real Real is an unique and insightful book which defies what everyone thinks of reality TV.Grade: A-

[dasuzuki · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

While this book wasn't bad it took me awhile to get through it. It was a great idea and I can't imagine what it would be like to constantly have cameras around while having to pretend to be friends with a bunch of people you don't care for. Jesse's best friend's reaction to her getting on the show was a bit of a turn off but other than that everything else goes pretty much as expected and you know who Jesse is going to end up with in the end. Jesse's parents were a surprise though. The way they reacted to the stress Jesse was under and the publicity she gets after the show airs seems really selfish. It was like they thought the money was more important than Jesse's happiness and then they seemed to always think the worst of Jesse despite there not being any past reasons to do so. Still this is probably a good insight into what some of these cast members of shows like The Real World go through.