Skinnybones and the Wrinkle by Glen Huser Date of Publication: 2006 ISBN: 0-888997337 Number of Pages: 232

REQUIRED READING ABILITY: Intermediate: Low/ Average
GENRES: Realism
THEMES : Coming of Age

SUMMARY:
Fifteen-year-old Tamara Tierny has only one goal in life - to become a model and enroll in a modeling course. Jean Barclay, a retired school teacher, has only one goal in life - to see for one last time a selection of Wagner's works in the opera "The Ring Cycle of Operas." Tamara, however, has just moved to her newest foster home with the Shadbolts, and Jean lives in a senior citizens’ home. They meet during Tamara's regular high school class visits to the nursing home, and together they form a plan to fulfill their goals by taking a road-trip to Seattle.

Despite several obstacles (including the lack of a driver's license, lying to relatives and foster parents, and the RCMP looking for the missing pair), the allies are united in their life-changing quest…but are they each prepared for just how life-altering the experience will truly be?

WHO WOULD LOVE THIS BOOK? A kid who...
- has a burning desire to fulfill a dream
- has a special relationship with an older aunt or uncle
- has lived in foster care, or knows someone living in foster care
- visits a nursing home
- has an elderly relative living with them

This book is recommended for students in grades 7 and 8 only (Young Adult).

WHAT ELSE?
Each chapter alternates between being told from the perspective of either Tamara or Jean. This allows the reader to personally identify with the two main characters. It’s a story of two very unlikely companions who, by all outwardly appearances, have nothing in common. Jean is a bit too fond of the bottle, and Tamara has some body image issues, which make it a better choice for intermediate readers.