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Reviewed by:
  • Emmy & Oliver by Robin Benway
  • Deborah Stevenson
Benway, Robin Emmy & Oliver. HarperTeen/HarperCollins, 2015 340p
Trade ed. ISBN 978-0-06-233059-8 $17.99
E-book ed. ISBN 978-0-06-233061-1 $10.99 R Gr. 8-12

Neighbors literally since birth, Emmy and Oliver were separated at seven, when Oliver’s divorced father took Oliver for the weekend and never came back. Now [End Page 9] it’s ten years later and Oliver has returned, and Emmy is excited to once again befriend the boy she adored in primary school. That’s good for Oliver, who’s unsure of how to fit in with his old/new life and appreciates Emmy’s warm welcome. As Oliver spends more time with Emmy, learning to surf with her (which her parents don’t know about) and attending parties with her (which her parents definitely don’t know about), friendship turns into something more. But how does love fit in with Oliver’s struggle with his family, Emmy’s yearning to break free of hers, and the unknown futures before them? Emmy’s narration is smart and sassy, and the romance plot is satisfying. Benway adds dimension to both characters rather than making the book simply Emmy’s rescue of damaged Oliver; the story also manages to make Emmy’s parents likable even as they’re overprotectively strict (largely in response to Oliver’s kidnapping). There’s also genuine poignancy in the fact that Emmy’s liberation from her parents, encouraged by Oliver, means she’ll be leaving Oliver behind for a future at college. An unusual blend of a soulmate story, a melodramatic plot, and a realistic book about adjustment, growth, and change, this will please romance fans as well as pragmatic souls with a sentimental streak.

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