Just Another Day in My Insanely Real Life follows a preteen girl named Cassie and the life she lives after her father is "out of the picture." Often, she feels weighed down by her family and to escape she begins to write a fantasy novel in her English journal. Children can definitely relate to Cassie's issues within the story and how she begins to overcome those issues that were a burden to her. ( )

Grades 5-8
This realist story is about a family that is struggling to maintain the life they had before their father leaves. This is a great humorous story told from the view of a 12-year-old girl named Cassie Baldwin.
Cassie feels responsible for her whole family after her father leaves, mom works long hours to support the family and older sister Miranda is to busy with her friends. While caring for the family Cassie struggles with school and is losing the only 2 friends she had. Cassie also feels she is the only one paying attention to her younger brother, Jackson, who is also struggling in school.
This is a story that many middle school students can relate too. Whether they are in the similar family situation or struggling in school with friends or teachers.
Rating: 4 stars
The stories humor and Cassie's journal entries help maintain a realistic feel to the story. It could have a little more depth into the story but it was very entertaining. ( )

Reviewed by Randstostipher "tallnlankyrn" Nguyen for TeensReadToo.com

We all feel like our own life is the most hectic, the busiest, and more demanding than anyone else's. That sometimes we are too busy with school and work that we hardly have time for ourselves. Unfortunately for Cassie, not only is her life hectic, but it is totally insane.

At the age of eleven, Cassie's parents decided to get a divorce and her father up and left. Usually, one of the parents gets to keep the lavish house that they all once lived in as a happy family, but no one ended up keeping the house. Instead, Cassie and her mom and two siblings all move into a run-down apartment, selling the car and the house. Now Cassie has to manage everything, especially since her mother is always working late, her older sister is forgetting to get the groceries or is always on the phone, and her little brother is just crying out for some attention..

It's not only home that's changing for Cassie. The two people she thought were her best friends seem to be turning on her, and at school her favorite subject is turning out to be a pain, all because of her teacher, Mr. Mullaney. Fortunately one good thing that comes out of that class is getting to write in a journal about anything she wants. That's where her imagination gets to thrive and Cassie finds peace. Let's just hope that Cassie can find a way to manage her new insane life.

JUST ANOTHER DAY IN MY INSANELY REAL LIFE is insanely hilarious. Cassie is that one character that every person is able to connect with, especially since most of us do have obnoxious siblings. The perfect read for anyone down in the dumps, Barbara Dee creates a cast of characters, along with the many excerpts from Cassie's journal, that will put a smile on everyone's face. ( )