Double Dutch
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- £3.99
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- £3.99
Publisher Description
A young girl who loves Double Dutch is caught in the crossfire of the secrets she, her best friend, and the school bullies are keeping in this emotional middle grade novel.
Delia loves Double Dutch more than just about anything, and she’s really good at it—so good she and her teammates have a shot at winning the World Double Dutch Championships. Delia would die if she couldn’t jump—but she’s hiding something could keep her off the team next year.
Delia’s friend Randy has a secret too, one that has him lonely and scared. And while Delia and Randy struggle to hide parts of themselves, their school is abuzz with rumors about what malicious mischief the terrible Tolliver twins—who just may have a hidden agenda of their own—are planning.
Delia and Randy’s secrets collide on what should be the happiest day of Delia’s life, and the collision threatens to destroy their friendship. Why can’t life be as easy for Delia as Double Dutch?
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Secrets, not all of them credible, abound among the eighth-grade protagonists of this disappointing novel. Delia has managed to hide her inability to read from her parents and teachers, but she doubts she can pass the proficiency test that will enable her to graduate to ninth grade and continue competing in Double Dutch jump rope. Randy, whose mother walked out several years ago, hasn't told anyone that his father, a long-distance truck driver, has been missing for weeks. And when twintornadoes hit the school, it becomes apparent that the Tolliver twins, who dress entirely in black and terrorize their classmates, are actually sensitive fellows behind their intimidating fa ades. Overflowing with rambling conversations and extraneous details, Draper's (Forged by Fire) narrative is often awkward ("The huge gym was filled with crisply ironed T-shirts, frantic practice jumps in the halls and parking lot, and the electric excitement of competition and challenge"). Jump-by-jump descriptions of the Double Dutch championships may rescue this tale for diehard jump-rope fans. Others can skip it. Ages 11-up.
