Dear 7th Graders,
I just finished reading Best Friends For Never by Lisi Harrison. It is the second book in the best-selling Clique series. I recommend it to anyone who read the first book in the series, The Clique.
I liked the way the author organized this book. Instead of chapters, Harrison used a special way of journaling. She records the date, time, and location, and each new entry, she spaces out the dates and times so the story flows well. She always leaves you with foreshadowing and a wanting to read on at the end of each entry. The entries aren't exactly journal entries, but they tell the story in third person form.
The book reminds me of a lot of other stories. It has a common story plot: four girls that have troubles along the way, but have a great relationship in the end. Good examples of them are The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants and The Mother-Daughter Book Club. Though these books are similar, it is fun to read about all of the different obstacles in the various stories. Harrison's way of writing about feuding friends is different than all of the others. She really highlights the cruel side of friendships and how far girls can go to get revenge.
The character development is very unique. There are five main girls in the series: Massie Block, Alicia Rivera, Dylan Marvil, Kristen Gregory, and Claire Lyons. On the back of every book in the series, there is a short summary of each girl so you know where they are as a group and as individuals. Throughout the book, Harrison drops hints here and there that give you more information about the girls. The information given to you connects to events later in the book, so all of it is useful.
The genre of this book is realistic fiction. It isn't hard to figure out, considering this book is about friendship and enemies. I'm sure there are girls who think that much about themselves, and there are also girls who get revenge on those who betrayed them. We live among these types of people everyday, and there isn't anything in this book we aren't capable of.
I don't agree with the way the main characters handle their problems. They just look for flaws in their fellow students, and whenever someone else makes a minor mistake, they will be there to humiliate them for it. While reading the adventures of the "Pretty Committee," I couldn't imagine being that conceited and spoiled.
I wonder why Lisi Harrison decided to write about this. I always wonder how authors get their ideas for their stories, and you would need personal experiences to come up with these stories. It is a mystery to me how Lisi comes up with ALL of these outrageous events.
I'd say the theme of this book is "frienemies." Massie, Alicia, Dylan, and Kristen start out like best friends, but throughout the book, their relationship is turned inside out. It really continues throughout the entire series, on and off frienships. You never know what is going to happen next in the story because of the unpredicted twists and turns throughout the multiple entries. At different points in the story, unexpected things happen, and you are encouraged to read on.
This is how I read the book: one event at a time. I read an entry, and found myself in the middle of an event. I kept reading until it was resolved, or put off until later in the story. That way, I didn't have to read for long periods of time, and I always looked forward to the next time I had to read. This book is full of interesting things, and it's good to sit down and get sucked into the tales of the "Pretty Committee."
I was struck by this passage, "The only thing harder than getting in is staying in." It's basically the main quote for the entire series. It really shows how popular and self-centered the girls are. It's just saying that they are the best girls in that school, and no one will ever be as good as them. It's an interesting statement, telling all of the other girls at Octavian Country Day School that they are the most powerful, and they don't believe the other girls "have what it takes." I couldn't imagine being that mean to the rest of the seventh grade girls.
I started this series with the first book, The Clique, back in the first quarter of this school year. It was my first book this year, and unfortunately, I got to this book in fourth quarter. This book is just so much fun to read, I recommend it to any girl in our school. I cannot wait until I can check the third book out of the school library!
Sincerely,
Emily P.
