Sarah is a teen struggling with her own identity. Struggling against peer pressure, this collection of poems by Hemphill, form the novel outlining Sarah battle and choices. The verse format gives the feeling of peering into the mind of a lost teenager, fighting to define herself against her overwhelming need for the approval of her troubled friend Robin. It is not the most unique tale, but the telling in verse gives the story a new spin and is certainly thought provoking and relatable for teens.

“I slowly flip over the third candy-gram,
the humdrum block print begins
HAPPY VALENTINE’S DAY,
but has the inspired ending
of Derek Crawford.

The red heart-shaped lollipop
fastened to the paper
makes my cheeks flambeau.

Am I doomed to join ranks
with the loons and the lovestruck?
I tuck the sucker in my backpack-
too good to eat.” (pg. 168-169) ( )

Sarah's story is typical in many ways - she begins as an anxious overachiever who wants to please everyone and has been expected to do so for a long time. She has friends, she has a crush - in many ways a typical story. Then she meets Robin, a girl who lives life on the edge. Robin and Sarah have a very toxic relationship - Robin drags Sarah down, and gets Sarah to care as little for things as she does. Then on the day of SAT's, Robin tries to kill herself, and Sarah has to figure out how to live life for herself, and how to make herself someone she likes. Hemphill has crafted this story in verse, and I think it is a good way to make this story. It's distilled into crucial feelings, emotions, and actions. While I started out not liking this story, it won me over by the time Robin came in. Sarah always recognized things in herself she didn't like, and by the end she has taken action. Very good and suited to the form. ( )

Deb Hipes says, "Compare Stephanie's 'emotionally-autobiographical novel' with Kristen Smith's Geography of Girlhood & Sonya Sones' verse novels to consider why all three writers chose poetry as their medium"

This story is about a teen girl and the struggles she and her friends go through in high school. The main character is a girl named Sara, and what she goes through with her old friends and one not so good new friend. She has to put all this weight on her shoulders because her new friend Robin is a total mess. Mean while she is pushing her old friends away.

I didn't think I would like this book because it was poetry but I was so wrong, this boook really hooks you. Theauthor really made thhis book juicy with detail and fun with flavor. I would definitly recomend this book to young adult girls. Plus its a short read :) ( )