 Jennie Gordon longs to have a twelfth birthday party like the parties everyone else in her class has, partly because she believes it will make her one of the group. There are good reasons at home why her mother has denied Jennie’s wish for a party, but in a moment of stress, when she is being teased at school, Jennie blurts out an invitation to the whole class. She surprises even herself, but after that, she feels obliged to make good her boast. With ingenuity and persistence, Jennie sets out to organize a party and to earn the money for it. Only her best friend Judy helps her because Jennie wants to prepare the whole party without her family’s knowledge and thus show them how independent and resourceful she can be. She persists in keeping her secret even though it has become a burden and even though she really longs to share her problems with her mother. Jennie feels that keeping her secret is the grown-up thing to do. Jennie’s party plans are thwarted at the last minute by an unfortunate accident. But there is a happy solution and Jennie does have a party—in an unexpected way that will keep the reader in suspense right to the end. |
