<p>" …To many teenagers waiting to hear from college, Opal may seem like an only slightly more crazed peer: To get Opal into the school of her choice Harvard, naturally her parents have created a detailed battle plan with the acronym HOWGIH (“How Opal Will Get Into Harvard”), complete with spread sheets of her extracurricular activities and family focus groups to keep her on track.</p>
<p>Then comes Opal’s campus interview. The admissions officer eyes Opal’s splendid record, puts down the file and asks the one question she is not prepared to answer: “Don’t you have anything you like to do in your spare time? Just for fun?”</p>
<p>With that, her parents immediately switch gears to HOWGAL, or “How Opal Will Get a Life,” and the novel takes off. Opal must have a complete makeover. They draw up a list: she must “Get popular,” “Get kissed” and “Get wild.” She reads Teen People and watches Beyoncé videos. She starts wearing Jimmy Choo spike heels and Habitual jeans instead of shapeless skirts and turtlenecks. Her father makes flashcards so she can learn slang: “keep it real” and “off the hook.” Of course, Opal gets into Harvard, but not before learning what her true values are. Publishers Weekly called the book " ‘Legally Blonde’ in reverse." </p>
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