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3.65 AVERAGE
3.65 AVERAGE
Really cute coming of age, finding your true self story. I really enjoyed it.
I didn't actually bother to read anything about this one, and thought it was going to be about guy and girl friends who grow apart as that gets weird. I would still like to find a book along that theme, but really enjoyed this twin story. It took awhile to get into, but the switching back and forth between the two "authors" helped move it along. I enjoyed that they had a strong family unit and involved parents. I kind of wanted to hit the brother most of the way through the book, but I feel that way about most boys that age, so maybe it just meant that the character was realistic?? ;)Overall, interesting and different look on the whole boys-starting-to-hang-out-only-with-boys stage.
Not my favorite from Jerry Spinelli...still a relatable story for kids and interesting enough to keep me reading until the end. This would be an appropriate read for 4th through 6th graders.
Jake and Lily are twins – the spooky kind. They hear each other's thoughts, sense when the other twin is in danger, and, most magically, sleepwalk together every year on their birthday. Lily wants to believe that they are a matched pair – alike in every way – but Jake has his doubts. In the summer of their eleventh year, Jake finally moves into his own bedroom, and the twins begin the painful process of differentiation.
I was hooked from the first chapter, which is narrated in alternating lines by the twins. The immediacy, wit, and authenticity of the language quickly establishes both the closeness of the sibling relationship and the conflict just beneath the surface. The twins take turns narrating subsequent chapters – first as a collective memoir, and then, after Jake moves out, as entries in separate journals. This structure ingeniously mirrors the plot: as Jake and Lily grow apart, so do their stories. The theme of belonging vs. differentiation is echoed in the story of their ex-hippie grandfather, Poppy, and in a tense subplot about a local bully. Vivid imagery grounds the book firmly in a sort of suburban every-town, and also amplifies the sense of wonder during the interludes of magical realism.
I have only a couple of quibbles. First, the book seems too long by about fifty pages. It bogs down in the last third, and the slow pace combined with the urgent tone reminded me (not in a good way) of Keeper, by Kathi Appelt. I would also like to have gotten to know the parents better. Mom and Dad are written nearly identically, which is ironic, given the context.
Overall though, Spinelli has written another winner.
I was hooked from the first chapter, which is narrated in alternating lines by the twins. The immediacy, wit, and authenticity of the language quickly establishes both the closeness of the sibling relationship and the conflict just beneath the surface. The twins take turns narrating subsequent chapters – first as a collective memoir, and then, after Jake moves out, as entries in separate journals. This structure ingeniously mirrors the plot: as Jake and Lily grow apart, so do their stories. The theme of belonging vs. differentiation is echoed in the story of their ex-hippie grandfather, Poppy, and in a tense subplot about a local bully. Vivid imagery grounds the book firmly in a sort of suburban every-town, and also amplifies the sense of wonder during the interludes of magical realism.
I have only a couple of quibbles. First, the book seems too long by about fifty pages. It bogs down in the last third, and the slow pace combined with the urgent tone reminded me (not in a good way) of Keeper, by Kathi Appelt. I would also like to have gotten to know the parents better. Mom and Dad are written nearly identically, which is ironic, given the context.
Overall though, Spinelli has written another winner.
It was a good discussion starter for the topic of bullying.
A slow start and super awkward '60s slang put into the mouths of kids. Satisfying last 1/3. I probably wouldn't recommend this to a kid. Jerry Spinelli! Was he phoning this in?
Jake and Lily are boy girl twins with a special connection (goombla) until their eleventh year when their parents move them into separate rooms (he is a boy you are a girl) and they loose their goombla. Written in alternating chapters Jake then Lily they start telling the story together and as the summer progresses they each tell their own story. More a story of growing up and finding who you are as a story about the lost twin connection as the book progressed, I enjoyed both Jake and Lily's stories and the challenges they faced over the course of the summer. A good message about dealing with loss, friendship, family, bullies and empathy for the intermediate reader. I enjoyed this Golden Sower intermediate reader nominee.