The Year of the Secret Assignments - Jaclyn Moriarty

Written in the form of letters, journal entries, diaries, etc., The Year of the Secret Assignments, by Jaclyn Moriarty, is humorous, though at times a bit cheesy. You have some difficulties believing in the characters at the beginning, as the boys seem a little too perfect and the girls...a bit bratty, to say the least. But as the plot unfolds to reveal some very interesting mysteries involving the occupants of these two rival schools, it gets more interesting, and the characters start to appear more human. By the end, you like the book and find it to have been a fun, amusing read, so don't be entirely put out by the first parts of the book. Lydia, Cassie, and Emily are three best friends who are forced to have pen pals from their rival high-school for a homework assignment. They each get three boys with three very different personalities. Cassie's, though, develops a psychotic response to her attempts to become friends with him, and as the year progresses, rules are broken and an all-out war between the two schools is started. The mystery to the origins of this legal battle is somehow connected to the pen pals, and they set out to prove just how. It's very funny, but at times, it can be a little shallow, the characters being, perhaps, just a bit too easily offended. I would still recommend it for a fun read, though, as the ending is satisfying.

Chelsea Grimmer

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