Constantly Moving the Bookmark

We are introduced to Alex and Rosie through the notes they pass back and forth in grade school. Alex and Rosie are best friends. As they grow, so does their means of communication. They progress from notes, to letters through to emails and IM’s and then surprisingly back to letters again. As close as they are and as much as they believe that they share everything … they don’t. It’s that one thing they do not share that causes all the problems.

This book is written and read using various means of written communication. At the beginning of the book I thought it was a really cute idea, imaging little ones writing notes in school (complete with the spelling mistakes little ones make), folding them up in some secret way and passing them to each other under their desks. Then when we progressed to letters and emails I began to wonder if these people had telephones they could pick up to actually speak to each other. By the middle of the book I was frustrated that I was getting all the news about their lives second hand. By the end of the book, which was predictable from page one, I was beyond frustrated (and angry that Alex stubbornly refused to spell “know” correctly).

This was a cute story, with some shining moments – I loved Rosie’s friend Ruth – but I was relieved when I turned the last page.

I do have to give kudos to Ms. Ahren who, at only 23, has had two of her books optioned for movies. “P.S. I Love You” was quite successful but I am curious to see how this story, told through correspondence, will be handled by Hollywood. I’ll likely skip the movie itself, but I am curious.