Pirouette

Gr 7 Up—Simone Stark and Hannah Segal, both 15, meet one another at Candance summer camp. They look identical and discover that they are twins who were separated at birth. Simone grew up in a single-parent family and, although a beautiful dancer, she is not interested in dancing as a career. Hannah, on the other hand, grew up in a traditional family and wants nothing more than to be a dancer if only her family would agree. They come up with the perfect plan; Hannah will take Simone's place in class while Simone takes a break from dancing. Since no one knows the girls are twins, they are able to pull off their plan fairly easily. Neither girl is looking forward to returning home, so they agree to swap places when they go back to Melbourne. Hannah lives with Simone's mom and goes to a premier dance school while Simone lives with Hannah's family and attends a regular high school. The ploy falls apart when the teens' boyfriends think they are being two-timed, but everything works out in the end. An enjoyable story with believable characters.—Jesten Ray, Seattle Public Library, WA