My Best Friend, Maybe

by Caela Carter

Overview

Right before they started high school, Colette's best friend, Sadie, dumped her. Three years later, Colette is still lonely. She tries to be perfect for everyone left in her life: her parents, her younger brothers, her church youth group, even her boyfriend, Mark. But Colette is restless. And she misses Sadie.

Then Sadie tells Colette that she needs her old friend to join her on a family vacation to the Greek Islands, one that leaves in only a few days, and Colette is shocked to hear their old magic word: need. And she finds herself agreeing.

Colette tries to relax and enjoy her Grecian surroundings but it's not easy to go on vacation with the person who hurt you most in the world. When the reason for the trip finally surfaces, Colette finds out this is not just a fun vacation. Sadie has kept an enormous secret from Colette for years . . . forever. It's a summer full of surprises, but that just might be what Colette needs.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781619632356
Publisher:	Bloomsbury Publishing
Publication date:	06/03/2014
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	304
File size:	3 MB
Age Range:	14 - 17 Years

About the Author

CAELA CARTER is the author of Me, Him, Them, and It. She's also a student at the New School's MFA program, concentrating in writing for children. Currently a middle school librarian, she spent six years teaching, and one summer educating and counseling young mothers and pregnant teenagers. She also writes for Teen Writers Bloc, a blog on children's literature.
CAELA CARTER is the author of Me, Him, Them, and It. She's also a student at the New School's MFA program, concentrating in writing for children. Currently a middle school librarian, she spent six years teaching, and one summer educating and counseling young mothers and pregnant teenagers. She also writes for Teen Writers Bloc, a blog on children's literature.

Editorial Reviews

05/01/2014
Gr 10 Up—Colette and Sadie are former best friends who have not spoken in three years. Out of the blue, Sadie invites Colette to go with her family to Greece. The protagonist is supposed to go to Costa Rica with her boyfriend and members of his church but agrees to go change plans and go with her former friend—a decision made out of a mix of curiosity and feeling like Sadie's invitation is a challenge. Once in Greece, the girls try to set aside their complicated history. They revert to their childhood traditions of playing cards, swimming, and sharing old jokes. But pretending everything is fine is difficult, and Colette starts needling Sadie for answers about their falling out and why she really asked her on this trip. The answers are slow to come, and when the she hears them, they shake her world. Once the secrets are revealed, the teens fully begin to understand the years of hurt they caused one another. Their messy and complex friendship is a realistic look at the ways relationships can change and wither. The narrator's quest to be who she needs to be (not who her demanding mother, her virtuous boyfriend, or duplicitous Sadie need her to be) and Sadie's tentative steps toward honesty are poignant. Stunning descriptions of Greece and a small cast of well-developed secondary characters round out this affecting story about identity. Suggest this one to readers looking for an introspective take on the intricacies of friendship.—Amanda MacGregor, formerly at Apollo High School Library, St. Cloud, MN

School Library Journal

04/14/2014
In her second book, Carter (Me, Him, Them, and It) sets up an intriguing situation: at the end of junior year, three years after Coley and Sadie stopped being best friends, Sadie invites Coley to a family wedding in Greece. Why? Sadie isn’t saying, any more than she ever told Coley why she dropped her in the first place. Coley impulsively says yes, but she has reasons for going: she wants to get away from her perfect (and perfectly dull) boyfriend, and she’s curious about who she is if she’s not the good girl her family and church expect. Cue the consequences—the people who were once Coley’s second family have changed. Sadie’s mother is angry at Coley, Sadie’s older brother has gotten hot, there’s a hostile and seemingly jealous cousin, and mercurial Sadie is alternately lovable and maddening. Unfortunately, the combination of complex plot machinations and Coley’s naiveté (which keeps her from seeing twists readers may spot sooner) make the book feel over-plotted and slow, with confusions and conflicts dragging on. Ages 14–up. Agent: Kate McKean, Howard Morhaim Literary Agency. (June)

Publishers Weekly

Vivid descriptions of the unusual landscape of Santorini will fascinate readers looking for a good travelogue, and the perceptive and heartfelt relationship dynamics will only add to the appeal.” —Kirkus Reviews

“A realistic look at the ways relationships can change and wither . . . Stunning descriptions of Greece and a small cast of well-developed secondary characters round out this affecting story about identity.” —School Library Journal

“Fast-paced, enjoyable.” —VOYA

“Carter weaves together classic elements of a coming-of-age summer-adventure story with poignant explorations of independence, sexuality, coming out, and the harmfulness of striving for perfection. Leavened with a sweet touch of romance, this meaningful tale of second-chance friendship should appeal to older teens looking for a meatier summer read.” —Booklist

“Readers bidding farewell to their own childhood selves will empathize with Colette as she emerges from the cocoon of past thinking into the confusing world of making up her own mind.” —BCCB

“Evie is the wisest, funniest, most conflicted narrator since Juno.” —National Book Award finalist Patricia McCormick, on Me, Him, Them, and It

“Raw and unflinching . . . Readers looking for a bold and gripping addition to their bookshelf will not be disappointed—and will not be able to put this book down!” —Jennifer Brown, author of Hate List and Bitter End, on Me, Him, Them, and It

“Deftly captures the emotional complexities of teenage pregnancy . . . For readers looking for genres that express the stark realities of life with all their highs and lows, this book will be one to recommend.” —VOYA, on Me, Him, Them, and It

“Breathtaking, brutal, and beautifully real, Carter's debut is stunning.” —Romantic Times, on Me, Him, Them, and It

From the Publisher

2014-04-09
Two former best friends raised by families with markedly different values take a trip to Greece in this poignant story that is centered around themes of sexuality, acceptance and belonging.High school junior Colette has grown weary of following the rules dictated to her by her conservative, religious family and longs for more physical involvement with her boyfriend and a chance to break out of her nice-girl role. And though she has other friends, she has felt adrift since Sadie, her closest childhood friend, mysteriously dropped her years earlier. When Sadie extends the unexpected and perplexing invitation to join her family on the Greek island of Santorini, Colette feels compelled to go both out of loyalty and to shake up her own life. Emotionally rich characters make this an engaging drama that is as much about people finding places within their families as it is about the damage done by rigid adults to vulnerable kids. A romance that develops between Colette and one of Sadie's older brothers is sweetly believable, though the eventual reveal of the overcomplicated reasoning behind Sadie's selection of Colette to come on the trip is less so.Vivid descriptions of the unusual landscape of Santorini will fascinate readers looking for a good travelogue, and the perceptive and heartfelt relationship dynamics will only add to the appeal. (Fiction. 14-18)

Kirkus Reviews