Of all the teenager books from the 50s-60s, this one was most out of the characteristic pattern of "girl meets boy and falls in love" (though that is part of the story). Rather, the center of the action is another girl, one in fact that the main character doesn't even like that well.

In the upper-class world of Manhattan, Dorothy (or Dot) is aware -- and grateful -- she is privileged, but she has also absorbed the idea that this somehow makes her a better person than those who have less opportunity and money. Brian (her brother), on the other hand, staunchly believes that a person's worth is not determined by social status. When he meets and befriends Madeline, a scholarship student from the lower class, Dot must grapple with her feelings about Brian and Madeline's friendship, and about her belief in her own superiority.

The story is written by 19-year-old Dot as she is reflecting back on her high school years, and it has the tone of a diary, with an almost stream of conscious style that is a little grating after a while. But I still read to the end, because I wanted to know how Madeline could have such an impact on Dot, and I wondered if they would become friends, if Brian would date and marry Madeline, and if this would be one of those typical romance stories, or something entirely different. ( )