Two mature recent high school graduates fall in love and bring out the best in each other in Lauren Myracle's (ttyl; Shine) thoughtful exploration of an intimate relationship.
Wren Gray is nearly perfect--smart, attractive, winner of a scholarship to nearby Emory, where her mother works, and a hospital volunteer in preparation for a medical career. After years of foster homes, Charlie Parker now lives with a wonderful family, is learning a carpentry trade and is college-bound. His Achilles heel is former girlfriend Starrla Pettit, who's needy, often cruel and always shows up at the wrong times. Wren and Charlie's first prolonged conversation occurs when Charlie hurts his hand severely enough to land in the E.R., where Wren is volunteering.
Myracle credibly chronicles the missteps and the coming together of two likable, intelligent people who learn to love and trust each other. She alternates between their third-person points of view and nails male-female dynamics. For Wren, intimacy means confiding in Charlie; she tells him how trapped she feels by her parents. Charlie fears losing Wren if he describes his early childhood experiences; he'd rather show her how he feels. This causes inevitable rocky moments (mostly involving Starrla) and leads to a climax that some readers may find melodramatic. But the relationship between Wren and Charlie always remains realistic and involving. Their responsibility about their sexual intimacy (Wren goes on the pill and insists Charlie be tested) models the importance of communication in all aspects of any healthy relationship--emotional, spiritual and physical. --Jennifer M. Brown, children's editor, Shelf Awareness