Keeping Promises

Keeping Promises
Caroline Crowley

Faith, Hope, and Ivy June
By Phyllis Reynolds Naylor

       Could you imagine telling someone your darkest secret? It would probably be a tough situation for anyone. For the smart and shy fourteen year old, Ivy June, she is put in a situation where she needs to tell someone her worst secret. The person that she needs to tell is another fourteen year old girl ,Catherine Clark,who is athletic and outgoing. Ivy is currently living with Catherine for the next couple of weeks because they both are in a student exchange program at their schools. The two girls were on their way to a school dance at Catherine's high school, and Catherine whispered to Ivy, "I am going to tell you something that nobody knows about. I am secretly dating that boy Cameron from our school" (211). Ivy was in shock because she was the only person who knew about Catherine's secret, and Cameron would be showing up at the dance that evening. She promised not to tell anyone. When Ivy arrived at the dance, she met up with some of Catherine's friends and they were discussing who they were going to slow dance with at the dance. Catherine's best friend,Kate, said, "I want to dance with Cameron. He seems like my type" (215). Catherine then joined the group, and Ivy mistakenly spilled the news to all of Catherine's friends about Catherine and Cameron dating. Her friends found it hilarious, but at the same time were annoyed with the fact that Catherine didn't tell them about the news.  Later that night at Catherine's house, Catherine confronted Ivy about how embarassed  she felt and how mad she was at Ivy for being untrustworthy. Catherine is out to get revenge on Ivy, and in return she is forcing Ivy to tell herself her most darkest secret so that Catherine can make Ivy feel just as bad as she herself feels. My opinion of the book is that it's very interesting and realistic. The book is realistic fiction, so many of the events that occur in the story can relate to real life situations that many teenagers face everyday. An example of this is when Catherine and Ivy have their ups and downs with each other, but at the end of the day, they are always friends. I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys a lot of dialogue full of drama.  This is a great book especially for teen agers who are experiencing ups and downs with their relationships.