A genuinely funny story about adolescent friendship - with some excruciating moments! Jenny and Amy are best friends, they do everything together. Now they're about to start High School and Amy says it's the perfect opportunity to reinvent themselves and get in with the popular set. Jenny doesn't understand why Amy is so desperate to fit in all of a sudden - she thought they both enjoyed being unique. At first she tries to keep up with Amy: she diets, goes to the school dance, even dyes her hair (unsuccessfully!). But the harder she tries to be tall, thin and blonde the more miserable she becomes, and the two drift apart as Amy spends more and more time with the popular Rosie Henley and her followers. Jenny finds that a group nicknamed "the Martians" - due to their unfashionable appearance and oddball behaviour - appeals to her more. Finally she gets involved with the non-conformist brother of one of the Martians and commits social suicide by dressing as a frog to protest against unnecessary dissections in Biology!

 

This book has been graded for interest at 12+ years.

This book was published 2013 by Walker Books Ltd .

Dyan Sheldon is a popular and highly respected author of books for teens and pre-teens as well as a number of stories for younger readers. American by birth, Dyan lives in London, NW1. www. dyansheldon. co. uk