TTYL

TTYL is about three sophomore girls. It takes the reader through all of the girls ups and downs. Maddie, Angela, and Zoe have been best friends since the 7th grade. The book is written in their IM's, which gives a really clear picture of what they really think about each other. Yes, they all love each other like sisters, but you see them talking about each other in a kind of snotty way, and how the person they are talking to reacts to that. It also really makes their personalities stand out. You realize they are all really different, but by being so different they teach each other important life lessons based on their personal mistakes.  Zoe trusts Angela, but every time she talks to Maddie about something she needs help with Maddie finds a way to make fun of her. In the middle of the book you see Zoe caring about Maddie because the "mean girl" at their school, Jana, humiliates Maddie in front of the whole school after pretending to be her friend. But Zoe stops trusting Maddie with secrets for a little while. Most of her secrets are about a flirtatious teacher.  Even though their problems tear them apart they always find their back to being friends.

Like I said, all of the girls are different. Maddie is tough, stubborn, a little too honest and is always trying to be someone she isn't. It can get her into bad situations a lot. People realize how fake she is being. But Angela and Zoe are always going to be there for her. You start to wonder if the reason she always feels like she needs to be different is because her dad is an alcoholic and that makes her feel insecure. Meanwhile Zoe is the complete opposite. She is an A+ student and she is very innocent, but she wants to act tougher and not be known as innocent, good girl Zoe. Angela is always there for everyone. She hates when Maddie starts hanging out with Jana because she almost acts like she doesn't want her to get as close to Jana as she is to her and Zoe. She also exaggerates and overreacts a lot. 

I LOVED this book. I read it in a day because I could not put it down. It was so real. All the situations in the book have happened to people and the way that all of the characters in the book act are really the way people in that age group act. It doesn't feel like you are reading a book, It feels like you are reading the instant messages of 3 best friends in high school.

I have been using the same reading techniques I have been using the whole school year. They just give me a really clear idea of what is going on. I write post-its, visualize, and predict. 

Lauren Myracle has an MFA in Writing for Children and Young Adults from Vermont College. She lives with her husband, Jack, and her sons Al and Jamie in Colorado.