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The Friendship Ring #6
Fill in the Blank
Tommy and Zoe have been friends forever. Being with Zoe is like being with one of the guys, only better. She likes to play sports and doesn't mind getting dirty. But lately Tommy's friends have started teasing him about being in love with Zoe. It's so ridiculous. Still, when Zoe asks him who he likes, Tommy suddenly realises there's only one name that would fill the blank...
Paperback
First published May 1, 2000
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About the author
Rachel Vail
56 books457 followersBirth
I was born on July 25, 1966, in NEW YORK CITY, and grew up in New Rochelle, NY, with my mother, my father, and my younger brother Jon. (And down the street from my future husband, though of course I didn't know that until much later.)
Interests
Some details, I do know-I was very into reading and theater, so I read every book I could get my hands on (especially realistic fiction, either contemporary or historical) and took acting workshops and auditioned for every play in school, camp, or the community. I played Peter Pan, Miss Hannigan in Annie, Benny Southstreet in Guys and Dolls, the Scarecrow in The Wizard of Oz, and lots of extremely memorable chorus parts-for instance, I was "girl number two" in Fiddler on the Roof-the one who said "We heard about your sister, Chava". I didn't care -I just wanted to be on stage. Waiting backstage before curtain call, after giving my all in a performance, was the best feeling I knew. In seventh grade I started taking magic lessons, and by eighth grade I was making all my own spending money by performing at kids' birthday parties as a clown named Tallulah. I liked the freedom of wearing all that grease-paint-I could be as wacky and un-cool as I wanted. I tried dance but felt so clumsy. I faked a sprained ankle to get out of the recital. I took voice lessons which made me a little light-headed (and I was afraid of the voice teacher's growling, drooling Doberman) and both saxophone and piano, neither of which I ever practiced. I did well in school but started a lot of my work at the last minute, in a crazy mad dash, so that it was never late but there were usually careless errors or areas I had to fudge. I had this idea that to work hard at something was sort of a negative, an admission that I didn't have natural talent. If I wasn't going to be Mozart and have the music (or dance, or math, or social studies term paper, or whatever) channeled through me from God, then I was just embarrassing myself by all that workmanlike effort. I didn't get over that idea until after college, by the way.
Career Ambitions
I never really planned to be a writer. I planned to be a financial wizard after learning about option-spreading at age 10, then a poet after discovering Shakespeare at 11. After overhearing "the real power is held by the lobbyists" on a class trip to Albany, I planned to become a lobbyist. Secretly, of course I always imagined myself as an actress, but that didn't seem hard or important enough, and also I worried I wasn't naturally gifted enough.
Parents
My parents were always great. I liked to make them proud, and they trusted me and supported my efforts and interests, which was sometimes weirdly tough. There was so little for me to rebel against.
As a Kid
When people ask me what I was as a kid, I always feel like my answer is at best incomplete.What are you like, as a kid? I'm still trying to figure out what I'm like as an adult.
Socially
Well, things went in waves. Sometimes I felt very "in", very aware of and tied in to the whole scene, excited by who liked whom, all the gossip, some of it less than kind. Other times I felt so alone-like there was nobody like me, nobody who liked me, nobody to talk to. And much of the time it was somewhere in between. A best friend when I was lucky, and a few people in each crowd I liked and who liked me. I resisted being classified as a brain or a jock or alternative or popular-too limiting. I would have to shut down too many parts of myself to be just one type.
Adolescence
I went through a very intense stage in middle school (Junior High). I worried about being too ordinary. I also worried about being too weird. I also worried about changing states of matter, my inability to be morally certain, ignorance (my own and world-wide), and making a fool of myself.
http://us.macmillan.com/author/rachel...
I was born on July 25, 1966, in NEW YORK CITY, and grew up in New Rochelle, NY, with my mother, my father, and my younger brother Jon. (And down the street from my future husband, though of course I didn't know that until much later.)
Interests
Some details, I do know-I was very into reading and theater, so I read every book I could get my hands on (especially realistic fiction, either contemporary or historical) and took acting workshops and auditioned for every play in school, camp, or the community. I played Peter Pan, Miss Hannigan in Annie, Benny Southstreet in Guys and Dolls, the Scarecrow in The Wizard of Oz, and lots of extremely memorable chorus parts-for instance, I was "girl number two" in Fiddler on the Roof-the one who said "We heard about your sister, Chava". I didn't care -I just wanted to be on stage. Waiting backstage before curtain call, after giving my all in a performance, was the best feeling I knew. In seventh grade I started taking magic lessons, and by eighth grade I was making all my own spending money by performing at kids' birthday parties as a clown named Tallulah. I liked the freedom of wearing all that grease-paint-I could be as wacky and un-cool as I wanted. I tried dance but felt so clumsy. I faked a sprained ankle to get out of the recital. I took voice lessons which made me a little light-headed (and I was afraid of the voice teacher's growling, drooling Doberman) and both saxophone and piano, neither of which I ever practiced. I did well in school but started a lot of my work at the last minute, in a crazy mad dash, so that it was never late but there were usually careless errors or areas I had to fudge. I had this idea that to work hard at something was sort of a negative, an admission that I didn't have natural talent. If I wasn't going to be Mozart and have the music (or dance, or math, or social studies term paper, or whatever) channeled through me from God, then I was just embarrassing myself by all that workmanlike effort. I didn't get over that idea until after college, by the way.
Career Ambitions
I never really planned to be a writer. I planned to be a financial wizard after learning about option-spreading at age 10, then a poet after discovering Shakespeare at 11. After overhearing "the real power is held by the lobbyists" on a class trip to Albany, I planned to become a lobbyist. Secretly, of course I always imagined myself as an actress, but that didn't seem hard or important enough, and also I worried I wasn't naturally gifted enough.
Parents
My parents were always great. I liked to make them proud, and they trusted me and supported my efforts and interests, which was sometimes weirdly tough. There was so little for me to rebel against.
As a Kid
When people ask me what I was as a kid, I always feel like my answer is at best incomplete.What are you like, as a kid? I'm still trying to figure out what I'm like as an adult.
Socially
Well, things went in waves. Sometimes I felt very "in", very aware of and tied in to the whole scene, excited by who liked whom, all the gossip, some of it less than kind. Other times I felt so alone-like there was nobody like me, nobody who liked me, nobody to talk to. And much of the time it was somewhere in between. A best friend when I was lucky, and a few people in each crowd I liked and who liked me. I resisted being classified as a brain or a jock or alternative or popular-too limiting. I would have to shut down too many parts of myself to be just one type.
Adolescence
I went through a very intense stage in middle school (Junior High). I worried about being too ordinary. I also worried about being too weird. I also worried about changing states of matter, my inability to be morally certain, ignorance (my own and world-wide), and making a fool of myself.
http://us.macmillan.com/author/rachel...
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Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews
February 6, 2025
Fill In The Blank is the sixth book in The Friendship Ring series by Rachel Vail. It can be read as a standalone, but it’s best to read the previous books first. The first four books revolve around the same events but from the perspectives of four different girls, each with her own book. The fifth book continues the story, and now, with the sixth book, we go back to those same events, but this time from Tommy Levit’s point of view.
Tommy is the main male interest in the earlier books. Zoe has liked him forever, and they’ve been friends since they were babies. CJ likes him too. Morgan dated him but, thankfully, has moved on. So yeah, things get complicated when Zoe and CJ, who are best friends, end up liking the same guy.
The title, Fill in the Blank, is pretty clever. It refers to a classroom assignment where students interview their classmates, given by their teacher, whom they call The Sadist. Zoe is supposed to find out more about Tommy, including whether he likes anyone. Since CJ knows Zoe is close to him, she asks her to help. Zoe likes Tommy and doesn’t actually want to set him up with CJ, though she also doesn’t want to lose CJ as her best friend. So, in class, when Zoe interviews Tommy, she straight-up asks him who he likes. She writes on a piece of paper: Tommy Levit likes ____________. Tommy takes the paper, fills in the blank, and hands it back. It says: Tommy Levit likes Zoe Grandon.
Awww, I just about died. I really like Tommy and Zoe together. Unfortunately, Zoe ends up rejecting him, and since we’re in his POV, we get to see how much it devastates him. He holds back his tears, waiting until he gets home to cry, which was honestly heartbreaking. But then, he has this thought about shaking Zoe and punching her in the face? I was like, What the hell? Definitely something an editor would cut today. The '90s were wild. And honestly, Tommy spends a lot of this book either hitting someone or thinking about it, he basically wants to fistfight 24/7. I guess that’s realistic for a seventh-grade boy? Maybe. I’ll never know. The girls’ books felt so relatable to being that age, so I assume this one is too, for boys.
We also get to learn a lot about Tommy’s life, his twin brother, Jonas, and their supportive parents. Tommy and Jonas are different but balance each other out. Jonas is calm and level-headed, while Tommy is impulsive and hot-tempered, but their bond is strong, and they always have each other’s backs.
The book is a little depressing, but that makes sense. Tommy is growing up, and that’s never easy. Middle school is an awkward, confusing time, and the story captures that well. It ends with Tommy feeling miserable over Zoe’s rejection and trying to get over her. We already know from book five that he never really does, but since we didn’t get his POV there, I wish we had. The way this book ends, it feels like the series could’ve continued from his perspective. I wonder if the author planned more books but, for some reason, never published them. It’s been 25 years, so I doubt we’ll ever get more, but hey, never say never.
This series was one of the ones that made me fall in love with reading. I first read it when I was ten, and it felt so relatable. Rachel Vail really captured what it’s like to be that age and go through all the emotions that come with it. I highly recommend it!
Tommy is the main male interest in the earlier books. Zoe has liked him forever, and they’ve been friends since they were babies. CJ likes him too. Morgan dated him but, thankfully, has moved on. So yeah, things get complicated when Zoe and CJ, who are best friends, end up liking the same guy.
The title, Fill in the Blank, is pretty clever. It refers to a classroom assignment where students interview their classmates, given by their teacher, whom they call The Sadist. Zoe is supposed to find out more about Tommy, including whether he likes anyone. Since CJ knows Zoe is close to him, she asks her to help. Zoe likes Tommy and doesn’t actually want to set him up with CJ, though she also doesn’t want to lose CJ as her best friend. So, in class, when Zoe interviews Tommy, she straight-up asks him who he likes. She writes on a piece of paper: Tommy Levit likes ____________. Tommy takes the paper, fills in the blank, and hands it back. It says: Tommy Levit likes Zoe Grandon.
Awww, I just about died. I really like Tommy and Zoe together. Unfortunately, Zoe ends up rejecting him, and since we’re in his POV, we get to see how much it devastates him. He holds back his tears, waiting until he gets home to cry, which was honestly heartbreaking. But then, he has this thought about shaking Zoe and punching her in the face? I was like, What the hell? Definitely something an editor would cut today. The '90s were wild. And honestly, Tommy spends a lot of this book either hitting someone or thinking about it, he basically wants to fistfight 24/7. I guess that’s realistic for a seventh-grade boy? Maybe. I’ll never know. The girls’ books felt so relatable to being that age, so I assume this one is too, for boys.
We also get to learn a lot about Tommy’s life, his twin brother, Jonas, and their supportive parents. Tommy and Jonas are different but balance each other out. Jonas is calm and level-headed, while Tommy is impulsive and hot-tempered, but their bond is strong, and they always have each other’s backs.
The book is a little depressing, but that makes sense. Tommy is growing up, and that’s never easy. Middle school is an awkward, confusing time, and the story captures that well. It ends with Tommy feeling miserable over Zoe’s rejection and trying to get over her. We already know from book five that he never really does, but since we didn’t get his POV there, I wish we had. The way this book ends, it feels like the series could’ve continued from his perspective. I wonder if the author planned more books but, for some reason, never published them. It’s been 25 years, so I doubt we’ll ever get more, but hey, never say never.
This series was one of the ones that made me fall in love with reading. I first read it when I was ten, and it felt so relatable. Rachel Vail really captured what it’s like to be that age and go through all the emotions that come with it. I highly recommend it!
November 28, 2012
with this book I fel in love with reading. I got so obsessed that I.would read.them 50 times in a month. if you are a parent.First thing.you need to do is give your kid this series to read. the best way for them.to start to read.books.
February 2, 2023
2.5*
There's so much speculation about Tommy in The Friendship Ring that it is interesting to see his side of things. If only this had been a bonus chapter somewhere along the series, it would have been perfect. Unfortunately, this is meant to be the conclusion to the series, and it doesn't even continue the story, much less conclude anything. Fill In the Blank takes place entirely within the first book, and I would argue we don't even learn anything substantial about the characters. With the preceding protagonists being Zoe, CJ, Morgan, Olivia and then Zoe again, the natural continuation would seem to be another book from CJ's perspective, but instead, we unexpectedly jump to Tommy. I get the feeling that this series was meant to continue beyond this book, and was ended prematurely for some reason. There are several loose ends I was hoping would be tied up. Fill In the Blank was underwhelming as the final book, and I'm very disappointed that that's all there is.
There's so much speculation about Tommy in The Friendship Ring that it is interesting to see his side of things. If only this had been a bonus chapter somewhere along the series, it would have been perfect. Unfortunately, this is meant to be the conclusion to the series, and it doesn't even continue the story, much less conclude anything. Fill In the Blank takes place entirely within the first book, and I would argue we don't even learn anything substantial about the characters. With the preceding protagonists being Zoe, CJ, Morgan, Olivia and then Zoe again, the natural continuation would seem to be another book from CJ's perspective, but instead, we unexpectedly jump to Tommy. I get the feeling that this series was meant to continue beyond this book, and was ended prematurely for some reason. There are several loose ends I was hoping would be tied up. Fill In the Blank was underwhelming as the final book, and I'm very disappointed that that's all there is.
June 13, 2014
This is the first book someone gave me (I read other books before, of course, but thus was totally mine and it made it special). I pretty much believe I was like 8 or 9 years old in that time and there's no way in heaven to say how much it changed my entire life. Tommy Levit and Zoe Grandon are my childhood heroes and I'm very grateful at them and Rachel Vail for letting me read a book with this amount of quality so I felt motivated to keep reading books. I guess you could say this book made me basically the book addict that I am today and I swear I can't write enough "thank you's" to it. It's brilliant. A piece of art.
July 18, 2016
I don't understand why I like to read these little books for preteens so much, maybe my 13 year old self wants a little attention too. The truth is that I've been reading this series since I was little, and I'll most likely keep doing it.
The only thing that left me with a rare taste in the mouth is the so inconclusive ending. It even drives me a little sad. Things should not be like this (I think in another book in the series the problem is clarified, but I'm not sure). But well, it's a cute book. Something that any girl would love.
The only thing that left me with a rare taste in the mouth is the so inconclusive ending. It even drives me a little sad. Things should not be like this (I think in another book in the series the problem is clarified, but I'm not sure). But well, it's a cute book. Something that any girl would love.
February 18, 2010
Deliciously dramatic!
When I was younger, I only had two books of this series, and after my sister took a serious interest in it, bought the rest off of abebooks.com. It's a well-rounded series, and although it may be repetitive to look at one situation from several viewpoints, I think it's a good thing for pre-teens to do, to begin to understand what's going on with their classmates.
Let's be serious here. I just like the gossip!
When I was younger, I only had two books of this series, and after my sister took a serious interest in it, bought the rest off of abebooks.com. It's a well-rounded series, and although it may be repetitive to look at one situation from several viewpoints, I think it's a good thing for pre-teens to do, to begin to understand what's going on with their classmates.
Let's be serious here. I just like the gossip!
November 16, 2023
It was a book series that I enjoyed much when I was in my early teens.
April 29, 2025
Una de las primeras juveniles que leí y me encantó. Es un relato de crecimiento, aventuras amorosas y exploración del cuerpo adolescente que cambia y se relaciona con el otro que también está creciendo.
November 14, 2013
Es un muy buen libro recomendado para adolescentes entre 13 y 15 años.
August 11, 2023
It's like it shows you the beginning and I go through adolescence, in which you begin to realize things that you didn't give importance to before
I loved it
I loved it
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews