Wishing on a Star

Gregory, in her first book for children, kicks off The Cheetah Girlz series, aimed at African-American preteens, with a choppy tale that tries hard to be hip. At center stage is narrator Galleria Garibaldi, a 14-year-old whose 250-pound mother looks like a ""Black opera diva"" and whose father is ""Eye-talian... from Bologna, Italy."" It's the eve of her enrollment in Manhattan's Fashion Industries High, which she'll attend with her best friend, Chanel (""a blend of Dominican and Puerto Rican on her mother's side, Jamaican and Cuban on her father's side--and sneaky-deaky through and through!""). When the pair hooks up with three other girls to form a singing group, they unleash their ""growl power"" and discover the ""jiggy jungle: that magical, cheetah-licious place inside of every dangerous, scary, crowded city where dreams really do come true."" The narrative consists almost entirely of glib dialogue that is often either cutesy (on the Internet with Chanel, Galleria types, ""You're a burp!... Boougie, undone, ridiculoso, and princess-y to the max. Don't deny it"") or, despite a glossary that translates words like ""chomp-a-roni"" (i.e., ""Trying to catch a nibble on the sneak tip"") difficult to decipher. After the singers' debut performance, one of them announces, ""The Spice Rack Girls had better bounce, baby, 'cause the Cheetah Girlz are 'bout to pounce!"" Alas, the competition need not fear: these players have considerably more bark than bite. Due out the same month is the group's next act, Shop in the Name of Love. Ages 8-12. (Sept.)