I want to start by mentioning a couple of things. First, when I was younger, like early middle school age, my neighbor Kim asked if I wanted this box of books that she didn’t want anymore. I said sure because books. Behold, at least forty volumes of Sweet Valley High by Francine Pascal. Second, now that I am an adult and with a foreknowledge that I don’t technically have to read anything that I don’t want to, my bookish conscience has to read them regardless. I have only ever abandoned I think one-two books in my life, and I don’t intend to abandon more, so when I need to give my reading a boost in speed, I read a couple of Sweet Valley every now and then.
With all of that being said, I am a person of substance; I want depth. I feel like this series was meant for girls in grade school based off of the language, the environment, the plots; to put it simply, it’s basically Degrassi as a book without the swearing and the sex. I mean, the kids make out, but that’s about it. This series was written in I believe the 70s, or the 80s based off of the covers, and there was a TV series based off of that. At the center of it all is Elizabeth and Jessica Wakefield who are twins and they never fail to make a point in every book that they look the same, but act really different.
With the world being different than it was back in the decade written in, I don’t know if the youth would catch on to these unless they were read in middle school, or you were like me and were semi-sheltered. Not like “everything is the devil including Spongebob” sheltered, but “don’t watch Pokemon because it’s stupid and Harry Potter because of witchcraft, but let’s watch that 70s show because it’s funny” kind of sheltered. Everyone is different with parenting.
If you want to start finding these, here is a launching point. We can definitely make this a gossip line for this series because frankly it’s been easy to throw shade at the characters as you read.
5/10
Chofa Times on the Chofa 