Circles

Publishers Weekly - Publisher's Weekly

Beebe and Mark may--or may not--be meant for each other. Although they live near one another, are juniors in the same high school and have friends in common, they don't meet until the novel's very last page. They come maddeningly close to meeting: Beebe's widowed mother even goes on a few dates with Mark's divorced father. And because Beebe's best friend is obsessed with arranging a blind date for the star-crossed duo, they hear quite a lot about each other. A subplot concerning a modernized version of Romeo and Juliet provides a bland counterpoint to this good- natured account of romantic blindman's buff. Mark and Beebe, though appealing, seem several years younger than their supposed ages. Ages 10-14. (Mar.)

Children's Literature - Jan Lieberman

What forces are at work that bring two people together? Sachs creates a hypothesis that keeps us thinking about 'what if.' We meet two high school juniors who attend the same school and have some mutual friends but whose paths do not cross. They would be right for each other. How can Mark and Beebe meet? He is hooked on astronomy and she on acting. Their circles seem destined to roam in different orbits or is it possible for them to intersect? Read it and see.

School Library Journal

Gr 6-9-- The story of Circles leaves off where many teen romances begin--the scene where boy meets girl. Using alternating points of view, Sachs draws a picture of the common threads in the lives of Mark Driscoll and Beebe Clarke. The 16-year-olds both live in San Francisco with a single parent, have a serious disposition, a passionate interest, and long for a close relationship with a member of the opposite sex. Beebe is an aspiring actress who inherited her mother's love for Shakespeare. Mark, who is fascinated by astronomy, recently moved to his father's house to escape his mother's nagging and coddling. Again and again the circles of Mark's and Beebe's lives intersect--their mutual friends try to introduce them to one another, and their parents date each other briefly--but something always prevents their paths from actually crossing. Sach's well-drawn characters and carefully orchestrated plot provide a fast and entertaining read. Younger teens, who often speculate about what might have happened ``if only,'' are sure to enjoy Sach's fresh and accurate perspective on life. --Jennifer Kraar, St. Joseph's University, Philadelphia