Three Black Swans

I understand why Caroline Cooney is such a popular author. She knows how to catch your attention and weave a tale. She has written some of my favorite books- Code Orange, The Ransom of Mercy Carter, etc. This book is no exception. It is the story of cousins, Missy and Claire. They are the best of friends- they seem to NEED each other.Their parents are getting worried about this obsession they have with each other. As the girls have gotten older, they have begun to look more and more alike. They finish each others sentences, they dress the same, they love the same colors and clothes and they know when the other is trying to reach them. Missy decides to pull a hoax in her science class and pretend that she has found her long lost twin- and she asks Claire to help her pull it off. Well, the hoax works all too well and the video goes viral. In another town, a boy sees the video and realizes he knows the girls- because he knows someone who looks JUST like them and her name is Genevieve. When Genevieve watches the video, she realizes the truth- the girls are triplets. As the girls race to meet each other, you slowly learn how the triplets had come to be separated- and it isn't pretty. This was a fast read that I think many kids would like. It is interesting and entertaining. Cooney seems to know the minds of teenagers very well. She even manages to redeem one of the sets of parents who seem irredeemable. I can recommend this book, probably more for the girls, as the characters are mainly female. Spring break starts right now and I am looking forward to spending it with some of the books piled on my shelf. Hope you have some to keep you company too. Happy reading my friends!