Spain or Shine

it was a good story, not written that well. but i recomend it.

Overshadowed by her other siblings, Elena feels like she never stands out. So she takes a once in a lifetime opportunity to study for a semester in San Sebastian, Spain. In Spain, she quickly becomes friends with outgoing Jenna, which leads her to experience many new things in Spain, from visiting Tapas bars to relaxing on the beach everyday. But Elena also has her playwriting on her mind as she wants her play to be selected to be performed for the school. Adding to her stress is the cute boy Miguel she has her eyes on. But when Elena meets her namesake, her great aunt Elena, things seem to make sense and Elena learns that she shouldn't feel hidden by other people. I thought that this book was cute. I love reading books that take place in other countries, so I loved the descriptions of San Sebastian and Madrid. I think that there was a good mix of everything in this book;romance, culture, and suspense. I was a bit disappointed in the ending. But overall, I enjoyed reading this book. As this is only one of the books in the Students Across the Seven Seas series, I look forward to reading the others soon. Reviewed by a student reviewer for Flamingnet Book Reviews www.flamingnet.com Preteen, teen, and young adult book reviews and recommendations

I am an adult reader and had only intended on reading a few pages into this book before giving it to some of my younger family members as a gift. However, Elena's character is so engaging that I could not put the book down until I finished it. This is a great book for young women. I strongly recommend it.

My teacher in my Spanish class said to read this because my friends and I want to be exchange students. I loved the book and so did my friends. We want to go but I don't think any of us would go alone like Elena did. Cool. She showed me that even kids who are a little shy can make friends and have fun.

My Spanish teacher recommended this book to our class so I thought it might be lame but it actually was very cool. My friends and I could really relate to Elena. She was kinda shy but she made lots of really cool friends and really got it goin' on! I'm really into theater so I was all like, Go Elena! This book makes you want to see Spain, especially the beaches and tapas bars. It sounds really cool! I can't wait to go someday! My friends and I loved the book and we pass it all around. Now we want to know what happens next!