Point of View

The novel is written in first person from the perspective of Patricia “Sweet Pea” DiMarco. Sweet Pea is a 13-year-old seventh grader, the daughter of Liz and Andre DiMarco. Her parents have recently divorced and now live in “mirror houses” on the same block. She has led a relatively sheltered life and is highly dependent on her friendship with Oscar. She is not very mature and her actions and attitudes reflect that immaturity. She seems to be an honest narrator because she reveals things that put her in a poor light. For example, she knows that she should tell her friend Kiera that she wrote the answer to a letter Kiera submitted to Miss Flora Mae, a local advice columnist, but she cannot bring herself to do so. She admits her mistake to the reader, and this action seems to show that she is an...