Tall Tales

Day, Karen. 2007. Tall Tales. 229 pages.

Meg Summers is a sixth grader whose biggest hope is to find a friend, a true best friend. But since she's the "new girl" at school, she's not quite sure how to go about it. Sure, it's easy to think about going up to strangers and saying "Hi, my name is Meg." But to actually do it...requires more courage than Meg has at the moment. So the first few weeks of school, Meg eats lunch in a bathroom stall. But then things start to change. It all happens so suddenly too. A lie here. A lie there. Soon there are lies everywhere. Then Meg meets Grace Bennett. A girl who would be a perfect best friend. The two are fast friends, but how long will their friendship last if Meg keeps telling lies to everyone. The truth--the truth she will hardly even admit to herself--is that her Dad is an alcoholic. That he has a problem with his anger regardless of how sober he is. Can Grace love Meg despite a few tall tales and in spite of her dysfunctional family? Can Meg learn to tell the truth and change her destiny?

"Today in the library I read this book about a girl who is 'different.' I don't know anyone like her, anyone who reads a lot and wants to be a writer. But I think, I'm like that girl. I almost laugh out loud. I just wish the girl were real and lived here in Lake Haven." (20)

http://www.klday.com/