YOU'RE NOT MY BEST FRIEND ANYMORE

Molly and Ben live in the same two family house, wear identical shirts to school, sit together in the lunch room, and, since their birthdays are only five days apart, share a single party every year. It’s a beautiful friendship that hits the rocks when they can’t agree on the kind of tent to buy with their collective savings. After nearly a week of not speaking, they reluctantly agree to have their party “for the sake of the grown-ups,” and discover that they’ve both spent all their money buying each other sleeping bags. Rift mended, they camp out together that night in the yard. In realistic, golden-toned watercolors, Soman artfully captures his young characters (one of whom is African-American) passing through annoyance, anger, regret, and loneliness before moving back to contentment. Conflict resolution is a common theme, but it’s rare and refreshing to see children work out their differences on their own, without adult advice. (Picture book. 6-7)