Rissa Bartholomew's Declaration of Independence

by Lynda B. Comerford

Book Overview

The hilarious, heartwarming first installment in a friendship series from a fabulous new voice in middle-grade fiction. Rissa Bartholomew didn't plan on declaring her independence from all of her friends at her own birthday party, one week before the start of middle school. But somehow, that's exactly what she did. Now she's entering sixth grade without a single friend, and she's determined to make new ones without simply following the herd.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0545050588
• ISBN13: 9780545050586
• Release Date: May 2009
• Publisher: Scholastic Press
• Length: 250 Pages
• Weight: 0.90 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.9" x 5.8" x 8.6"
• Age Range: 8 to 12 years
• Grade Range: Grades 3 to 7

Customer Reviews

Courtesy of Teens Read Too

In the summer before starting middle school, Clarissa (Rissa) Bartholomew begins to realize that she and her friends don't have much in common anymore. Her best friend, Beth, whom she has been friends with since preschool, now insists on being called "Bethany," and talks incessantly about clothes and hairstyles. The other girls in their group seem to be heading in that same direction, while Rissa is stuck dealing with Beth's castoff clothes for a wardrobe and unmanageably curly hair. On the day of her joint 11th birthday party with Beth at a local pizzeria (Beth's idea, even though Rissa's allergy to tomatoes forces her to order fried chicken instead), it dawns on Rissa that her friends just don't understand her anymore, nor does she them. When they begin to tease her about a boy they know, Rissa decides that the time has come to expel herself from "the herd" and declare her independence. But being an independent individual turns out to be much more difficult than Rissa could have guessed. Apparently, telling off every friend she has just before the start of middle school is enough to turn her into a social outcast right off the bat. Even her strained attempt to become friends with a quiet, fantasy loving girl named Violet proves to come at a price, since the rest of the students have already pegged her as "weird." The pressure that Rissa feels from her mother, who seems desperate to reconcile the friendship between Rissa and her friend's daughter, doesn't help at all. Rissa keeps wondering if she will ever find a way to show people who she really is, so that she can stop blending in to the background and letting people make her life decisions for her. The strong, humorous voice of the main character leads the reader through this younger voyage of self-discovery. I loved following Rissa's journey, and I'm sure any young girl who has ever felt a need to be herself will feel the same way. Reviewed by: Allison Fraclose

A fine story of growing up and change

Lynda B. Comerford's RISSA BARTHOLOMEW'S DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE tells of an eleven-year-old who has had the same friends all her life. But when these friends become obsessed with boys, ballet and dressup, Rissa thinks it's time she become her own person - at the confusion of all. A fine story of growing up and change makes for a lively account. A fine pick for libraries seeking easier stories for elementary-level readers past the picturebook age.

Insightful and Funny!

What a perfect book for those often-ignored 4th-8th grade readers! I teach fifth and sixth grade. Rissa Bartholomew will become a favorite of my students, I know. I hope there's a sequel in the works!

A great read

Rissa Bartholomew's Declaration Of Independence My tweenage daughter loved this book. I liked the jacket, so I took a peek, and started reading. Rissa is a very realistic heroine, not sticky-sweet and not incredibly edgy. Just a very normal girl. Also not as formulaic as a lot of fiction for this age group. Would recommend this highly for 10 -- 13 year old girls.