Sara Zarr (The Lucy Variations) and Tara Altebrando (The Best Night of Your (Pathetic) Life) team up to deliver an authentic story about two girls spending their last summers at home before they leave for college.
When Elizabeth gets her roommate assignment from UC Berkeley's housing department, she e-mails Lauren to get acquainted. Elizabeth, an only child living with her mother in suburban New Jersey, is looking forward to bonding with her new roomie. She writes a long "babbling" message introducing herself and talking about appliances. Lauren, one of six children in a very crowded California household, had requested a single dorm room; she replies with a perfunctory answer, which immediately offends Elizabeth.
From this inauspicious beginning, a friendship sprouts. In alternating chapters, the two girls fumble their way to understanding one another. Their correspondence becomes more important to them both as the summer progresses. Each forms a bond with a new boyfriend, figures out how to say goodbye to long-time best friends and tries to forge a more mature relationship with her parents. These concerns will resonate with high school readers navigating their way through similar changes. Each girl's journey feels genuine. As they move closer to the moment when they will begin sharing a very small dorm room, readers begin to believe they may succeed.
Roomies is full of life and love, choices and responsibilities, all presented in a very neat and appealing package. --Lynn Becker, host of Book Talk, the monthly online discussion of children's books for the Society of Children's Book Writers & Illustrators