DOUBLE ACT

Author: Jacqueline Wilson Illustrator: Nick Sharratt Rating: 8/10 Age: 9+ Genre: Fiction, Friendship, Family, Pages: 188 Published in: 1995 Main Characters: Ruby, Garnet, Dad, Rose.

Synopsis: This story is about two identical twins, with the names of Ruby and Garnet. The twins have been living with their father and grandmother since their mother, Opal, died. The two have always been close despite their differences—Ruby is sociable and dreams of being an actress, while introverted Garnet is content to let Ruby dominate their relationship. The twins have their own secret language, and they don't like to make friends at school because they have each other. When their father gets a new girlfriend, Rose, and a new job, their once stable relationship is thrown into turmoil, as the relationship leads to feelings of betrayal from their father to their late mother, and it comes with a big price—leaving their grandmother behind for a bookshop in the country. As they have to change houses, Ruby and Garnet have to also change school. They get into trouble with the village bullies after throwing mud at them. Garnet starts off well in new school and works hard, but once she makes a new friend called Judy, Ruby sulks and ignores her twin. Garnet quickly changes her actions to repair their relationship. After this, they do not behave properly in school and do not talk to anyone else. They never listen to Rose and feel angry and neglected. Seeing Ruby’s personality of being a bold, daring girl, she finds an article about auditions for a TV adaptation of The Twins at St. Clare's, and is keen for the two of them to go ahead and audition, even though Garnet declines and their father doesn't agree. Surprisingly, Rose is supportive, although her efforts are for nothing, Ruby plots and succeeds in them running away to London for the audition. When their moments come, Ruby confidently does her audition well. Garnet however is very scared, and is about to deliver a good audition but their father appears just as she is about to begin, and she cannot say anything. She feels terrible for spoiling Ruby's chance at fame. However, Ruby tries to brush it off and shows sympathy towards her sister Garnet. However, like in all stories, this peace will not last long! The girls figure out that the TV series is being filmed in a prestigious boarding school, with the name of ‘Marnock Heights’. However, in order to enter the posh school, the twins would need a scholarship, and in order to obtain this, they would have to pass the entrance exam. Ruby, being her proud self, is certain that she would obviously pass the test, and Garnet would not. Unfortunately, her dreams are crushed when a letter arrives to them… Garnet had passed the test! Ruby is devastated as she was confident that she would win it if they both could not 'wangle one' together. Garnet is torn between pleasing her sister and doing something different, for once. Meanwhile, Ruby refuses to talk to her, and often wanders off on her own. She is determined to be different from Garnet, and ends up cutting off her hair. She does not let herself be around Garnet for the whole summer, and even though they both feel as though they are missing something, Ruby is too proud to apologise while Garnet wishes she was able to. What will happen to the twins? Will Ruby ever talk to Garnet again? Will they ever be like they were before? Read this fascinating story about family and differences to find out!

Why I like this book: This book is amazing for younger readers, and it teaches about how important it is to respect each other’s differences. In the style of writing a book as 2 young twins, I think I have also learnt a lot about this book and how much our families really mean to us, even if we may not realise it sometimes.