Review: The Nerviest Girl in the World by Melissa Wiley
A feisty girl from a family of ranchers lands a job as a daredevil stunt girl in the early days of silent film in this adventurous and funny cross between Wild Hearts Can't Be Broken and Ramona.
Pearl lives on a ranch where her chores include collecting eggs and feeding ornery ostriches. She has three older brothers, who don't coddle her at all. And she knows a thing or two about horses, too.
One day, Pearl's brothers get cushy jobs doing stunts for this new form of entertainment called "moving pictures." They're the Daredevil Donnelly Brothers, a Death-Defying Cowboy Trio. Before she knows it, Pearl has stumbled into being a stunt girl herself--and dreams of becoming a star. The only problem is, her mother has no idea what she's up to. And let's just say she wouldn't be too happy to find out that Pearl's been jumping out of burning buildings in her spare time.
Filled with action, humor, and heart--not to mention those pesky ostriches--The Nerviest Girl in the World introduces a spunky heroine whose adventures will have kids on the edge of their seats and whose sense of humor will have them laughing until the very last line.
-summary and cover via Goodreads
Mini Review: This was a delightful MG book! I really enjoyed reading about Pearl and her family, and their stunts. Learning a little about the early days of movies was also interesting. Even though I obviously know movies haven't been around that long (the early 1900s really weren't that long ago, though with technology it's easy to forget that), it's so weird to think of a time when "moving pictures" was considered new, and how fascinated people were with them, and how they were such a novelty back then. I honestly can't imagine not having movies and TV now, they have such a huge impact on our world. As an adult I quite enjoyed reading this book, and I know when I was around Pearl's age, I would have absolutely loved it! I also quite liked the illustrations. Definitely recommend trying this MG book! :)
I received an e-ARC of this book from the publisher.
