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Synopsis
October 1962. Juliet Klostermeyer's world is turning upside down. All she hears from her parents and teachers and on the news is the Russian threat and the Cuban Missile Crisis. And things aren't much better at home. Her best friend, Lowell, doesn't seem interested in being her friend anymore—he'd rather hang out with the new boys instead. When Patsy moves in, things are looking up. Patsy is fearless, and she challenges the neighborhood boys to see who's better, stronger faster: a war between the boys and the girls. All the talk of war makes Juliet uneasy. As the challenges become more and more dangerous, Juliet has to decide what she stands for—and what's worth fighting for.
This is a powerful middle-grade coming of age novel from teen powerhouse Ellen Wittlinger.
Publishers Weekly
Fifth-grader Juliet cannot grasp why Lowell doesn't want to be her friend anymore, so when Patsy moves into her neighborhood, she happily befriends the loud, opinionated girl. Lowell seems relieved (“You have a girl to play with, and I have boys. That's how it's supposed to work.... Isn't it?”), but Juliet still feels hurt. When a neighborhood bully proposes a series of competitions between boys and girls, Juliet joins Patsy's team. Even though the tests are increasingly dangerous, readers might be surprised by the intense final face-off. Wittlinger (Parrotfish) raises many complex gender questions without being heavy-handed: can boys and girls be friends as they get older? Are traditional girl activities like dancing as athletic as stereotypical boy ones like hitting a baseball? Readers will find it easy to root for Juliet, both as she competes and as she sorts out her relationships with sensitive Lowell and the often pushy Patsy. The book's backdrop—an Air Force town during the Cuban Missile Crisis—ratchets up the anxiety and clearly places the children in a critical moment between childhood and the adult world. Ages 10-14. (Apr.)