Ida swears off best friends after Elizabeth moves away but can't help being drawn to new girl Stacey. I liked the realistic portrayal of Ida's angst and her desire to connect with a kindred spirit. ( )

Girls will like this book but I don't think it would make an impact with the boys. ( )

Reviewed by Julie M. Prince for TeensReadToo.com

Bowe knows the fourth grade.

Julie Bowe's MY LAST BEST FRIEND rings true for anyone who's survived heartbreaking separation.

After Ida's best friend moves away, she's sure she'll never have another friend like Elizabeth. Until the day the new girl, Stacey Merriweather, smiles at her.

The thing I love most about this book is the way Ida thinks:

"She's smiling at you with the kind of smile you don't see on a real person very often. The kind you see a little kid draw with a big fat crayon on a piece of white paper. The kind you have to force yourself not to smile back at.

Trust me, you don't want to get too close to big-crayon smiles. That's because people with big-crayon smiles don't stick around very long. They move away just when you've gotten used to the way their hand feels sticky when you hold it, or the way they hiccup when they talk fast, or the way they whistle by sucking in instead of blowing out, or the way they can touch their nose with the tip of their tongue."

For Ida, entering the fourth grade without Elizabeth is like diving into the deep end of the pool before she's sure she can swim well enough to get back to the edge. She's got no safety devices and feels like no one is rooting for her as she splashes around and tries not to go under.

I don't know about everyone else, but that's exactly how elementary school felt to me sometimes. This is one of those books that comforts its readers with the knowledge that someone gets it. Someone like Julie Bowe.

I can't wait to read the sequel, MY NEW BEST FRIEND! ( )

I liked this book so much because it is a light hearted, quick read book. A new novel, “My Last Best Friend” is not in the local libraries yet, so I bought the paperback edition for only $5.95.

Excellent story of fourth-grade girls learning about friendship, secrets, etc. ( )