Sweethearts by Sara Zarr

SWEETHEARTS
Author: Sara Zarr
Source: Purchased

• Reading level: Young Adult
• Paperback: 224 pages
• Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers; Reprint edition (January 1, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0316014567
• ISBN-13: 978-0316014564

SYNOPSIS:


As children, Jennifer Harris and Cameron Quick were both social outcasts. They were also one another’s only friend. So when Cameron disappears without warning, Jennifer thinks she’s lost the only person who will ever understand her. Now in high school, Jennifer has been transformed. Known as Jenna, she’s popular, happy, and dating, everything “Jennifer” couldn’t be—but she still can’t shake the memory of her long-lost friend.

When Cameron suddenly reappears, they are both confronted with memories of their shared past and the drastically different paths their lives have taken.

MY THOUGHTS:

Boy was I fooled into thinking this was going to be a sweet little romance about reunited childhood friends.  This was definitely not an easy read.  It was more serious than I thought it was going to be and left me with a heavy heart when I finished it.

Cam and Jennifer were best friends growing up and also social outcasts.  Jennifer was teased for being heavy and sensitive.  Cam was also teased and bullied by the other children in school.  Together they become the best of friends.  When Cam disappears, Jennifer believes he is dead.  She deals with the loss and slowly transforms herself into Jenna.  She is now popular, skinny and has tons of friends at a new school.  Then Cam reappears and turns her world upside down.  She hides from all of her friends that she knows Cam.  She doesn’t want to be that same girl again that Cam knew when they were little.  Together they struggle with dealing about the past and what happened to them before Cam disappeared. 

Don’t expect a teen romance with this book.  It deals with deeper emotions and real life situations that most people don’t have to deal with or even want to think about.  The writing was great yet at the end I wanted more.  I wanted a few more chapters to get a better closure.

MY RATING: