Coming of Age

One of the primary themes that runs throughout the novel is growing up and coming of age. In some way, each of the characters learns lessons about growing up and dealing with responsibilities in life. Primarily, Colie learns from each of the other characters in the novel that she is a beautiful person, inside and out. Some of the characters in the novel - Aunt Mira, her mom, Norman, Isabel and Morgan - influence Colie's change in a positive way. The popular kids that make fun of her and her arch enemy help Colie to come to the same conclusion, but from their negative behaviors toward her.

Isabel comes of age by realizing that being nice to people may be a better approach to helping them than by being mean. This leads Isabel to help give Colie a makeover and to help Morgan see Mark for...