Prince William, Maximilian Minsky and Me

By Holly-Jane Rahlens

Book Overview

A brainy girl's first crush - on a certain British royal - leads to unexpected discoveries about life, loss, love, and loyalty in this hilarious, poignant, award-winning novel set in modern Berlin. Nelly Sue Edelmeister knows exactly who she is: a skinny thirteen-year-old Berlin schoolgirl with thick glasses, a brain the size of the ENCYCLOPAEDIA BRITANNICA, and a brilliant career ahead in astronomy. But that's before she develops a hopeless crush on the handsome and newly bereaved Price William, future king of Great Britain. And it's definitely before she meets the odd but oddly attractive Maximilian Minsky - former New Yorker, full-out goth, and basketball ace - who is klutzy Nelly's last hope for making the school team before it heads off to Eton, England, and virtually into Prince William's arms. Meanwhile, Mom is pushing Nelly to do the bat mitzvah thing, and her parents are bickering day and night. Sometimes it seems like the no-nonsense Risa, their beloved, elderly family friend - a survivor of Germany's darker past - is the only one in the house who keeps Nelly sane. With pitch-perfect insight into adolescent angst and infatuation, family tensions, and the experience of being Jewish in contemporary Berlin, Holly-Jane Rahlens paints a humorous and surprisingly moving portrait of a determined heroine posed to charm young readers across the globe. Includes a glossary of foreign terms.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0763627046
• ISBN13: 9780763627041
• Release Date: September 2005
• Publisher: Candlewick
• Length: 160 Pages
• Weight: 0.95 lbs.
• Dimensions: 8.0" x 1.1" x 5.5"
• Age Range: 12 to 15 years
• Grade Range: Grades 7 to 10

Customer Reviews

Charming book for 12-13 year old girls

12-13 year olds who are contemplating the day they become a Bat Mitzvah should love this book. Different insight than usual. Beginning may be slow but it really picks up afterwards.

Prince William, Maximilian Minsky and Me

Nelly Sue Edelmeister is a thirteen year old girl with more than usual teenage angst. A self-described "nerd," bright and introspective beyond her years, Nelly lives in Berlin with her American Jewish mother ("I left New York but it never left me!") and her wayward yet loving German Christian father. She is surrounded by problematic parents, an all-wise substitute grandmother, a Jewish senior citizen support group and a shifting coterie of colorful friends. The only constant in her life is her obsessive infatuation with Prince William, heir to the British throne. The story is well crafted and written, with Nelly - conflicted about her forthcoming Bat-Mitzvah - coping with issues of religion, death, friendship and family dysfunction. The story line is imaginative and realistically told and provides readers with a teenager's insight into being Jewish in contemporary Berlin. The story is written in the first person with punchy dialog that includes some blunt and suggestive - but not gratuitous -language. Nelly is a multi-dimensional individual whose words and thoughts realistically mirror those of a sensitive and conflicted teenager. Other characters, though, sometimes appear as caricatures or stereotypes. A glossary is provided for the Jewish words that pepper the story. Teenage girls will particularly enjoy it. Recommended for ages 12-14. Reviewed by Norman H. Finkelstein