Myracle, Lauren. Kissing Kate.

Penguin Putnam, Dutton. 199p. c2003. 0-525-46917-6. $16.99. JS

Kate and Lissa have been best friends for four years, ever since being paired in a 7th grade gym class. Going to the movies every Saturday afternoon, sharing secret jokes, collecting starfish at the beach, two halves of a whole, "Kate and Lissa." It all ends one summer night at a party where Kate has had too much to drink, and they find themselves alone in a gazebo kissing passionately. When they are interrupted by the arrival of two boys, Kate leaves Lissa alone with her feelings of love and confusion, later ignoring her entirely. Lissa wrestles with her emotions, questioning her sexuality and stinging from the betrayal of her best friend. She retreats into herself, exploring the concept of lucid dreaming and fending off the friendly overtures of Ariel, a weird classmate and new co-worker.

Gradually, Lissa realizes that nothing can ever be the same between her and Kate, and she even tries her hand at dating. It's only when she's able to decipher her troubling dreams, with the help of Ariel, that Lissa can begin to understand her feelings, and accept herself. Myracle's sensitive coming-of-age story speaks honestly, and at times humorously, to teens who are in the same struggle to understand themselves and their feelings. Michele Winship, Asst. Prof., Capital Univ., Columbus, OH