Same Difference » (Reprint)

Emily is ready for a change. She's been in the same town with the same friends for a long time...and none of them really understand her art. But when she goes to Philadelphia for a summer art institute, she suddenly finds like-minded people. One in particular, Fiona, intrigues and challenges her. But there are some things Emily is going to have to find out for herself -- like what the balance is between life and art, and which is more important when push comes to shove.

Publishers Weekly

Emily's life reeks of the ordinary: she lives in suburban New Jersey in a posh gated community and hangs out at Starbucks with her friends in a town where "most of the buildings are old, and if they're not, they're eventually made to look that way." When Emily heads to Philadelphia for a summer art institute-complete with an eclectic cast of funky classmates and one dreamy teaching assistant-she faces the classic teen dilemma of whether to choose the familiar over the new and exciting, while figuring out who she really is: Emily from Cherry Grove or Emily the aspiring artist? ("I look like two halves of two different people mashed together," she reflects during a trip to the beach. "Is it possible to be a poseur in both worlds?") Vivian (A Little Friendly Advice) serves up the story with vivid description and dialogue; the author's talent for scene-setting and evocative imagery is especially effective for a story about a girl just discovering her eye as an artist and herself as a person. Ages 12-up. (Mar.)

Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.