Review - Red by Alison Cherry

Title: Red

Author: Alison Cherry

Series: Stand Alone

Pages: 320

Published: October 8th 2013 by Delacorte Books for Young Readers 

ISBN: 9780385742931

Source: Publisher via Netgalley 

Description: Felicity St. John has it all—loyal best friends, a hot guy, and artistic talent. And she’s right on track to win the Miss Scarlet pageant. Her perfect life is possible because of just one thing: her long, wavy, coppery red hair.  Having red hair is all that matters in Scarletville. Redheads hold all the power—and everybody knows it. That’s why Felicity is scared down to her roots when she receives an anonymous note: I know your secret.
Because Felicity is a big fake. Her hair color comes straight out of a bottle. And if anyone discovered the truth, she’d be a social outcast faster than she could say "strawberry blond." Her mother would disown her, her friends would shun her, and her boyfriend would dump her. And forget about winning that pageant crown and the prize money that comes with it—money that would allow her to fulfill her dream of going to art school. Felicity isn’t about to let someone blackmail her life away. But just how far is she willing to go to protect her red cred? 

I Give This ...

There was never really a doubt in my mind that I would read this.  I'm drawn to books were the story is so obviously about a redhead, especially when that seems to be a focus of the plot.  I thoroughly enjoyed what this story represented.

To be honest, I wasn't sure about the story at first.  The story seemed slightly ridiculous in the way the town was completely prejudice against anyone who was not a redhead.  Even those who had strawberry blonde hair weren't exempt from some ridicule.  Then I realized that for me, the story represented how ridiculous any prejudice is.   It really put the whole book in perspective for me, although I have no idea if that was the author's try intent.  

I really enjoyed Felicity.  She's a great lead  character.  She may be the one that seems to have it all, but she's lying to everyone.  Although, I was a little disappointed to discover that she was what everyone refers to as a strawberry.  I think it would have been more scandalous has she been a complete different hair color.   I like how she handles the blackmail.  She gives in to the demands at first.  But, gradually she sees that she's really not that different from those who are punishing her.  She begins to see how she would be treated if she didn't dye her hair.

I think I was most disappointed in Felicity's mom.  I really expected more from her.  Yes, we know all along that her mom is the one who took her in the gradually darken her hair the color it is.  But, for her to be so unsupportive of Felicity's decisions was disheartening.  I always hate it when a grow women can't see their selfish actions.  I was also initially worried that Felicity would take the wrong actions at the pageant.  But, she proved how strong she really was.

Overall, a different book than I initially thought it was going to be.  While it was completely lighthearted, it really made me think about things.  Favoritism and prejudice are wrong no matter what the reasoning.