A review by backpackingbookworm
Best Friends by Jacqueline Wilson
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.75
I've been a JW fan all my life and have enjoyed rediscovering her books again as an adult. In Best Friends, Gemma and Alice have been together since birth - literally, they were born on the same day and have been inseparable ever since, despite being complete opposites (Gemma is loud, selfish, and bossy, while Alice is timid, meek, and sensible). When Alice's dad gets a new job in Scotland, Gemma is distraught and does everything she can to keep Alice for herself, scared that she'll find a new best friend in Scotland and forget all about her.
This wasn't my favourite JW novel, however, I did appreciate the allusion to other books (Tracy Beaker and Biscuits from Cliffhanger). There were too many things I didn't like though:
- The characters - other than Biscuits and grandad, I found the characters unlikeable and hard to put up with. Gemma was actually a horrible friend and too self-absorbed for my liking. Her mum was also awful, as was Alice's and I couldn't stick them as JW would say.
- That brings me to the writing - I normally really like JW's style but this one felt repetitive and exaggerated - perhaps I was just more aware as I listened on audio at 1.75x but it all just felt a bit overcooked.
- I didn't really like the morals in the book - feeling like you can't move on from a friendship or have other friends, eating everything in sight to the point of throwing up because you won't politely say no, an unwillingness to share, etc.
It's not one I'll be passing down to my future child but there are more than enough others I've loved that make up for it.
Rating breakdown
This wasn't my favourite JW novel, however, I did appreciate the allusion to other books (Tracy Beaker and Biscuits from Cliffhanger). There were too many things I didn't like though:
- The characters - other than Biscuits and grandad, I found the characters unlikeable and hard to put up with. Gemma was actually a horrible friend and too self-absorbed for my liking. Her mum was also awful, as was Alice's and I couldn't stick them as JW would say.
- That brings me to the writing - I normally really like JW's style but this one felt repetitive and exaggerated - perhaps I was just more aware as I listened on audio at 1.75x but it all just felt a bit overcooked.
- I didn't really like the morals in the book - feeling like you can't move on from a friendship or have other friends, eating everything in sight to the point of throwing up because you won't politely say no, an unwillingness to share, etc.
It's not one I'll be passing down to my future child but there are more than enough others I've loved that make up for it.
Rating breakdown
- Plot/narrative - 3.3
- Writing style/readability - 3.2
- Characters - 2.2
- Diverse themes - 2
- Ending - 3
Overall - 2.7