Maya Gold's Cinderella Cleaners series has the bright, cheery appeal of a Disney Channel made-for-TV movie, cut with some Nora Roberts-style respect for service-type jobs. I was dubious, but found the combination worked remarkably well.

The first book in the series—Change of a Dress—introduces Diana Donato, a teenage girl with a bossy stepmother (of course), two obnoxious stepsisters, and downtrodden dad. When her stepmom decides it's time for Diana to start pulling her own weight, she gets roped into helping out at the family's dry-cleaning business, Weehawken, New Jersey's Cinderella Cleaners. The work is surprisingly entertaining—particularly when Diana discovers an invitation to a fabulous New York City gala in the pocket of a client's coat. When she learns that the owner is out of town, Diana decides to use the invitation herself, leading to a memorable (in all senses of the word!) evening.

Change of a Dress was released simultaneously with its sequel, Prep Cool. When Diana's best friend's phone is stolen by a snooty rich girl at the nearby Foreman Academy, Diana is determined to steal it back. Luckily for her, a Foreman Academy uniform has just arrived at Cinderella Cleaners, and—even more luckily—all of her dry-cleaning friends are once again willing to help her transform herself into something she's not.

Gold's restrained writing style keeps these stories pleasantly low-key, despite their fairytale origins and super-perky packaging. The Cinderella shout-outs were present but didn't overpower the story, and Diana's innate dignity kept her from making too big a fool of herself, no matter how wild her adventures. (Plus, all the dry-cleaning behind-the-scenes stuff was fascinating. Who knew?) Neither book has the makings of a crossover hit, à la the Sammy Keyes series or the Sisters Grimm books, but readers in Gold's target audience—girls in grades four to seven—are likely to enjoy themselves.

Review based on publisher-provided copies.

Labels: Book Reviews, Maya Gold, teen literature