1. The Daughters
By: Joanna Philbin
Erin Jaros
Reading- Miss Roche
Period 5
5-11-12
2. Joanna Philbin: Biography
Joanna Philbin was born in Los Angeles. When Joanna was in
the 4th grade, she would always write to Judy Bloom and Judy
would always write back. It was then that she decided she
wanted to be a writer. She and her family moved to New York
City when she was ten so her father, Regis Philbin, could
pursue his television host career. Bad acne and braces in high
school, only made her strive, even more, to be an author. She
went on to graduate from Brown University. After realizing
that a job for Seventeen magazine wasn’t going to cut it, she
went to law school at the University of Notre Dame. She
started taking fiction classes there and completed the MFA
program in creative writing. In 2006, she tried writing for TV
shows. She got her own show “Las Vegas”. Joanna sat down
with a friend and discussed the series she wrote and it was
published. Now she follows Judy Bloom on Twitter!
http://joannaphilbin.com/index.html
3. Summary
Lizzie Summers, the daughter of Katia Summers, doesn’t like to be the center
of attention or in the spotlight. But when you have a model for a mom, that’s
pretty hard to avoid. Lizzie and her friends- Carina and Hudson- are all
daughters of famous and wealthy families. The three friends always have each
others backs. When Lizzie accidentally says her mom’s clothes are slutty to
some reporters, it gives her a bad reputation, but a good opportunity. A
photographer named Andrea asked Lizzie to model for her and that made
many more fashion photographers want to have her featured in their
magazines. Lizzie had the time of her life with Andrea, but when it came to
Martin Meloy, it was a different story. She ended up storming out of the Martin
Meloy photo shoot. In the end, Lizzie learned she didn’t need the biggest name
in fashion to feel beautiful while modeling and that her mom will love her no
matter what..
4. Characters
Main Characters:
Lizzie Summers- strawberry blonde/orange hair color, light skin color,
doesn’t have the best relationship with her mom, Katia Summers, shy at
the beginning and not liking much attention, to being perfectly
comfortable with cameras and attention by the end of the book
Hudson Jones- singer, daughter of Holla Jones, also a singer , fashionista,
dark hair and dark complexion, calmer than the other girls, the “problem
solver”
Carina Jurgenson- blonde, daughter of Karl Jurgenson, goes to work at her
dad’s multi-million dollar business, tomboy
Minor Characters:
Todd Piedmont- Lizzie’s childhood friend, “ladies man”, breaks a lot of
girls’ hearts
Katia Summers- Lizzie’s mother, wealthy supermodel, married to Bernard
Summers, tries to have a good relationship with Lizzie
Andrea- the photographer that “discovers” Lizzie
5. Plot
Introduction
- Lizzie is terrified by cameras and being the center of attention
- Todd, her childhood friend, comes back from Europe with his dad
Rising Action
- Lizzie starts to like Todd more now that she remembers him
- Lizzie gets asked to one of Todd’s parties
- Todd tries to kiss Lizzie but she pulls away- her chances of him liking her
are over
Climax
- Lizzie and her mom are at a red carpet event and some news reporters
bombard her. She says some bad things about her mom and the videos are
everywhere on the internet.
Falling Action
- Andrea asks Lizzie to model for her and Lizzie accepts
- Andrea gets Lizzie features in New York Style and on the cover for New
York Style also.
- Martin Meloy (a big fashion name) wants her to model for him.
6. Plot Continued
Conclusion
- Lizzie storms out of the photo shoot because Martin said her mom was old
and useless.
- Todd’s dad was arrested for stealing.
- Todd and Lizzie kiss.
- Carina leaves town- nobody knows where.
- Lizzie goes back to model with Andrea.
7. New Vocabulary
Anticlimactic- n. (anticlimax) an event, conclusion, statement, etc., that is
far less important, powerful, or striking than expected- pg. 169
“The first school dance of the year always reminded Lizzie of Christmas: lots
of exciting lead-up, and then a somewhat anticlimactic main event.”
Sheepishly- adj. embarrassed or bashful, as by having done something
wrong or foolish- pg. 133
“Todd smiled sheepishly as he turned back towards his room.”
Parasite- n. a person who receives support , advantage, or the like, from
another or others without giving anything useful or proper return, as one
who lives on the hospitality of others- pg. 200
“’ Because he’s a parasite, honey!’” Katia yelled.
Appraising- v. to estimate the monetary value of; determine the worth of-
pg. 218
“………, and then Martin stepped into the room, appraising Lizzie with a fist
under his chin.”
Inadequate- adj. not adequate or sufficient; inept or unsuitable- pg. 248
“She felt inadequate around her mother.”
10. Starring Actors
Todd Piedmont played
by: Channing Tatum
Andrea played by:
Michelle Pfeiffer
Katia Summers played by: Sandra Bullock
11. Soundtrack Tunes
G-L-A-M-O-R-O-U-S, yeah
G-L-A-M-O-R-O-U-S
We flyin' first class up in the sky
We flyin' first class, livin' the life
In the fast lane and I won't change
By the glamorous, ooh, the flossy, flossy
The glamorous, the glamorous, glamorous
By the glamorous, ooh, the flossy, flossy
The glamorous, the glamorous, glamorous
By the glamorous, ooh the flossy, flossy
Glamorous by: Fergie
12. Rating
I gave The Daughters a rating of
5 out of 5 stars
I LOVED the book. One reason I liked the book was
because the girls were around my age. Even though I
couldn’t really relate to many of their problems I
understood them. As I was reading this book, I was
thinking, Wow, I am reading my dream.
13. Other Recommendations
Other novels by Joanna Philbin:
- The Daughters Break the Rules
- The Daughters Take the Stage
- The Daughters Join the Party
