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Diva    by Alex Flinn Amazon.com order for
Diva
by Alex Flinn
Order:  USA  Can
HarperCollins, 2006 (2006)
Hardcover
* *   Reviewed by Lyn Seippel

Caitlyn plans to be an opera singer. She doesn't lack talent, but she does lack encouragement from those closest to her. All alone, she attends an audition for enrollment into the Miami High School of the Arts.

She doesn't tell her friends what she's doing - they're more interested in football players and trying out for cheerleader. Besides, they think the art school students are freaks. She doesn't tell her mother, who she's going to have to convince that she really belongs at the School of the Arts. She doesn't tell her dad. He doesn't even know she likes opera – or care. Although he lives only a short distance away with his new family, Caitlyn sees him just once a year.

In Alex Flinn's earlier novel, Breathing Underwater, Caitlyn was abused by her boyfriend Nick. Afraid of losing Caitlyn, Nick called her without talent and fat. She's left that relationship behind but she still thinks about Nick.

When Caitlyn gets her letter of acceptance, her mother is furious at her for auditioning without her permission. The School of the Arts is in a bad part of town, and why does Caitlyn like opera? Why doesn't she try out for cheerleading? In this follow-up novel, we learn about Caitlyn's relationship with her mother, as well as her lack of confidence in her talent and her future.

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