Penpal problems

Letters from the Inside by John Marsden.

By answering a magazine ad looking for a penpal, Tracey and Mandy become friends. Their letters share details of their lives –families, friends, school, boys. The cordial chatter hides something deeper. Something darker. Can they remain friends even after secrets are exposed?

Likes
The author captures the characters voices, bringing both girls to life.

The ending. It really makes you think about the book and what has happened.

Dislikes
There is a lot of slang that, for me, took away from the story. The slang was dated, with words like “rad”, or too localized (the novel is set in Australia). The combination could deter modern teens, mostly due to the time period in which it was written (late 1980s/early 1990s).