J.D. Reed of "People" magazine in October 1990 called her a "neurotic overachiever". In the first book, Blair is introduced as a privileged, comically vain overachiever. Straight-laced, sensible, and ambitious, Kai is the classic overachiever. Meanwhile, Kate Aspero, all-around overachiever, finds love with Roberta, a part-time waitress. Unlike Alex, he is an overachiever when it comes to school. His father pushes him to be a tennis overachiever, and his mother is barely present. She has a perfect attendance record and is an overachiever. Emily (Olesya Rulin) is a speed rope-jumping champion of her school and general overachiever. He also runs into Mary, a junior overachiever trying to find her confiscated cell phone. He expects his son to be an overachiever. The "New York Post" observed, "An overachiever like John Denver couldn't have been this boring".