The Anti-Princess Club: Cruise Control by Samantha Turnbull

Allen and Unwin, 2015. ISBN 9781760291884
(Age: 9+) Highly recommended. The Anti-Princess Club: Cruise Control is a story about girls and for girls. You won't find these girls doing stereotypical activities and there are definitely no princesses! Meet Emily the mathematician, Grace the sports fan and athlete, Bella the building designer and Chloe the biologist. They are 11 years old and the best of friends. They are also the members of the Anti-Princess Club. Emily loves an online game called Mazebreaker, a Maths game that requires players to break codes and solve algorithms to move though the game. She has won 4 tickets on the Mazebreaker cruise and a chance to compete against other top players. Of course the rest of the Anti-Princess Club are going to support her. The girls soon meet the other contestants who just happen to be boys and the boys don't know who Emily is. How will they feel about a girl being a better player than them? Can Emily beat all the other players in this highly skilled game?
This is an Australian story which means promoting Australian authors and characters. It has easy to read text, exciting events involving all the girls and their independent skills and it is highly recommended for girls aged 9+. Young female readers have a lovely collection of strong female leads who model excellent friendship skills as well as confidence and knowledge in their desired activities and hobbies.
Kylie Kempster