Bufflehead Sisters

By Patricia J. DeLois
Berkley Books, $15.00, 357 pages

For as long as she could remember, the only thing Janet wanted in life was a sister. Her dreams are met in kindergarten when she meets Sophie, an unusual girl with an unstable family life. They remain friends throughout school and beyond, as Sophie develops into a troubled yet free-spirited girl with a bad reputation. Janet’s parents initially welcome their daughter’s friend when the girls are young, but find themselves divided by her behavior throughout high school. The two girls themselves face rocky times over the years, culminating in the revelation of the one and only major secret Sophie ever kept from Janet.

Bufflehead Sisters starts out slow, but DeLois writes intriguing characters that swiftly draw the reader in. Sophie is a fascinating person, vaguely familiar to many of us and yet completely different from the majority of society. Her friendship with Janet is beautiful; it’s clear to the reader that Janet is often the only grounding element of Sophie’s life, which is both a terrible burden and a sign of great trust. The plot is quite predictable at times, but that doesn’t detract from the intensity of the story at all. Fast-moving and hard to put down.

Reviewed by Holly Scudero