No to her paralyzing stage fright, no to her mother, no to the dwarf she initially has a crush on only to find out he’s a jerk, and no to being walked all over. (A SHIPPING PUN HAD TO BE MADE, OKAY?)Įventually, Ainsley is able to stand up for herself and say NO. On this ship in particular, spies are always lurking around to make sure staff members are staying in character and Ainsley is always fighting with Ian, who plays the Pig King in the nightly stage show Fairy Tale Cruises puts on. If you’ve ever been curious about what goes on behind the scenes of a cruise ship’s operations, Once Upon a Cruise will give you that in addition to Ainsley’s coming-of-age story.

After her mom puts her in charge of the ship’s failing teen club and assigns her a million little tasks like watching over the ship’s kids at a towel-folding activity class, you’ll want to shake her mom down. It’s never fair to the kid in that situation, but it’s very real and Staniszewski writes it well, making you empathize with Ainsley. Kids whose parents have recently split up will recognize a lot of themselves in Ainsley, especially if they feel pressured to be the adult for their parents. Unfortunately, that leads to her mom taking advantage of her as a do-everything girl and leaning on her tween daughter when she should know better.

The recent divorce hit her mom hard and she wants to be there for her mom. That’s certainly how it seems when you read about Ainsley’s adventures onboard a fairy tale cruise!Īfter Ainsley’s mom took a cruise director job aboard what is essentially a mockbuster Disney cruise, Ainsley gets to spend all summer onboard with her because she decided against staying with her dad.

Listening to them, you’ll get the idea every cruise is a small fustercluck hidden beneath a veneer of order. You’ll probably get a different story from the cruise ship workers, though. When they’re bad, they’re the 2013 Poop Cruise aboard the Carnival Triumph. Having had the good fortune to go on three cruises in my lifetime, I can tell you that cruises are pretty darn good when they’re good.

Once Upon a Cruise by Anna Staniszewski