GIRL TALK Letters Between Friends

by Kali Kaye (Pseudonym), Vicki Hinze

In the early 1960s, four girls, as part of a 7th grade, nationwide school program, become pen pals. They have little in common but become lifelong friends who confront together the challenges girls confront in the world they confront them. Through their letters, we share their lives--their hopes and dreams, triumphs and defeats, joys and sorrows--and for all their differences, we discover that they are stronger and wiser for having and being friends.

Genres: Young Adult, Fiction, Coming Of Age

394 pages, Kindle Edition

First published March 15, 2012

Reviews

[Yvensong · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a quick summer-type read. Not my usual genre, but I am a sucker for reading letters, even if they're fictional. Four girls are required to write pen-pal letters in school and from there a deep, lasting friendship develops between them. The author handled the sense of growth between these four from their teens to their forties pretty well. It is obvious, through the letters, how their friendship supports one another through some difficult times, even though they are not living near each other.

[Alexis · Rating 5 out of 5]

I adored this book.

A beautiful testament to the power of friendship between women. The book follows 4 girls who are assigned the homework of becoming pen-pals. They manage to stay friends thru-out the years/lovers/husbands/children/and life.

I truly regretted when this book ended...but it was PERFECT!

[Ginger · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved this! The whole book is nothing but letters between 4 girls (7th grade) and continues until they’re 40 years old.
This can easily be devoured in a day or over a weekend. This would also make a good beach read.

[Darlene · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was an inspiration to this non-letter-writing person. It made me want to write letters! I have a friend I met in 6th grade who managed to write to me often enough over the years of our developing womynhood that we are still friends now. Reading some of these letters made me think of our own. But now that we have email and cell phones we are both horrid at doing it. I have another friend who wants to exchange letters and she has written me, even though we live a couple miles from each other. But <> I haven't followed through yet. Must get busy and write letters.

Letter writing is such a lost art. I remember when I moved from my parents house into a city far away that I was writing letters to them and other relatives all the time. There is something about writing pen to paper to help one to connect to themselves and others. If for no other reason, this book is worth reading for this inspiration.

I would guess that the womyn in this book are my age as the timeline has them in 7th grade when I was. I think that was why I was thrown off by a few things that felt needed a bit more research. But rather than getting nit-picky I'll keep this review on the story itself. It told a wonderful story of four girls who stayed friends forever no matter what. To think that a teacher's assignment could work such wonders! I loved that each person was individual and each had lives, goals and dreams of their own. I loved how it showed that opinionated people who are in opposing camps could love each other through it all.

I labeled this chic-lit but it was far deeper to me than that. It is a light read that takes half a day to read, but it had depth to it--and it inspired me. That's worth something right there. I wish it hadn't ended so abruptly. I want to see what happens as they get in their 60s and older.

[Lisa · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book. At first I thought it was actual letters between friends, but it turned out to be fiction. That didn't take away from the story. It was a book I could have kept reading as you really do care about the characters as if they were real people. I began writing to pen pals when I was a young girl, and I do have a friend that I have kept in contact with for many years.

I recommend this book to anyone who likes to make friends.

[Christine C · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a quick lunchbreak read. I really enjoyed the format, and the friendship through letter writing reminds me of a few friendships I have developed over the years. If the book had been longer, I would have liked it even more. The letters reference phone calls between the friends, and the inclusion of those would have added so much more to the story. Or even the letters between the main characters and secondary characters.

[Nicole Adrienne · Rating 2 out of 5]

Simple and short YA Fiction novel about 4 girls who start off as pen pals in the 7th grade. The book follows their letters through the age of 40. It was a simple read, but entertaining. I also think a wider age range could appreciate all of the subjects the letters turn to as the girls turn into women and go through many life events.

[Dorisc · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a good book. It started with a Mother of one of the girl's making her write four letters to four of her friends. As the girls got older they kept writing letters to each other from that time on. They grew into women with families and moved away from each other but still kept in touch throughout their lives-the good, the bad, and the sorrows of their lives as women.

[Ann G · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book. It follows the lives and growth of four girls from 7th grade through adulthood. The story begins in the 1960s and continues through the 70s-80s. The growth and development of the characters is well done and I found especially interesting as I was growing up in the 60s-80s as well. I found it a very easy read and could not put it down.

[Darcysmom · Rating 3 out of 5]

While I enjoyed the book, I was disappointed by the abrupt ending. The characters were in a good place for the story to end, but the last letter needed a touch more. I would still recommend giving Girl Talk a chance. Epistolary novels are challenging to write, and Vicki Hinze meets the challenge admirably.

[Issa · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was a pretty interesting story about the friendship of four women from 7th grade until age 40. The problem was the style of telling the story through letters. It developed because they all met through a pen pal assignment. However, the story would have been more satisfying if it had been more detailed and fleshed out instead of spaced out through letters.

[Sarahanne · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was an interesting viewing of the changing world through the lives of 4 pen pals. A little predictable but history sorta should be, right?

[Staci]

free kindle book