This book takes place at a typical American high school, where sixteen-year-old TJ is a student. Her life is pretty bland until her junior year, when a gorgeous blonde boy, Pan, arrives. She starts to fall in love with him, but, soon after, he reveals to her that he is gay. They become great friends instead—until TJ falls in love with another guy, Caspar, who returns her feelings. As TJ and Caspar start dating, TJ and Pan’s friendship keeps being put on hold.
The two main themes of this novel address friendship and sexuality. Peter Marino stresses the fact that good friends are extremely important, and, if you find the right ones, you can tell them anything and trust them with anything. He also makes Pan a funny, complicated, lovable person who shatters gay stereotypes. I loved Pan just as much as TJ did.
I read this book in huge clumps— a hundred to two hundred pages at a time. I couldn’t put it down because TJ is so completely believable. She is a smart, caring, funny teenager that I could “be with” as a reader the whole way through.
Another good thing about this novel is that it is appropriate for a boy or a girl, even though it’s narrated by a girl. A book that I’d compare it to is Sweethearts by Sara Zarr. TJ really reminded me of Jenna, the main character of Sweethearts, and Pan and Caspar both reminded me of Cameron.
If you are a teenage boy or girl, you should definitely read this book—it’s a ten.
Charlotte
Publisher: Holiday House, 293 pages
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Tags: Peter Marino