Flipped by Wendelin VanDraanen
This story is told from two perspectives: Bryce Loski's, a boy who worries more about his image than what is the right thing to do, and Juli Baker's, a passionate, who-cares-what-others-think, spirited girl. Right from the beginning, Juli is enamored with Bryce's dazzling blue eyes, while Bryce thinks so much of Juli that he prefers to lock himself in his bathroom until he's positive she's gone. This story really begins to take heart when Juli's beloved Sycamore tree is in danger of being sawed down.
"Then I had an idea. They'd never cut it down if all of us were in the tree. They'd have to listen!" [...]"They just stood there, staring up at me." [...] "'Oh, Dad, it's okay. I'll get over it.' 'No, Julianna. No, you won't.' I started crying. 'It was just a tree....' 'I never want you to convince yourself of that. You and I both know it isn't true.'"
It is interesting to see the shifts in these characters as the story moves along. Both children learn to see what's underneath another person. And Grandpa Chet plays a significant role in this. Adults are an important of this story which I think is what makes this story stand out from other pre-teen "romance" novels. There is some real truth submerged in all the butterfly-in-the-stomach, infatuations. The ending is slightly hoaky in a She's All That (my generation) sort of way, but I enjoyed it nonetheless. This story would be great for compare/contrast, as well as studies in character, and character development.
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