Double Act

by Jacqueline Wilson, Nick Sharratt (Illustrator), Sue Heap (Illustrator)

No one can ever be like a mother to us, especially not stupid frizzy dizzy Rose! Ruby and Garnet are 10-year-old identical twins. They do everything together, especially since their mom died three years ago. Can being a double act work forever? Especially when their father starts dating again?

Genres: Childrens, Fiction, Middle Grade, Contemporary, Young Adult, Novels, Realistic Fiction

192 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1995

About the author

Jacqueline Wilson was born in Bath in 1945, but spent most of her childhood in Kingston-on-Thames. She always wanted to be a writer and wrote her first ‘novel’ when she was nine, filling in countless Woolworths’ exercise books as she grew up. As a teenager she started work for a magazine publishing company and then went on to work as a journalist on Jackie magazine (which she was told was named after her!) before turning to writing novels full-time.

One of Jacqueline’s most successful and enduring creations has been the famous Tracy Beaker, who first appeared in 1991 in The Story of Tracy Beaker. This was also the first of her books to be illustrated by Nick Sharratt. Since then Jacqueline has been on countless awards shortlists and has gone on to win many awards. The Illustrated Mum won the Guardian Children’s Fiction Award, the 1999 Children’s Book of the Year at the British Book Awards and was also shortlisted for the 1999 Whitbread Children’s Book Award.

Double Act won the prestigious Smarties Medal and the Children’s Book Award as well as being highly commended for the Carnegie Medal. The Story of Tracy Beaker won the 2002 Blue Peter People’s Choice Award.

Jacqueline is one of the nation’s favourite authors, and her books are loved and cherished by young readers not only in the UK but all over the world. She has sold millions of books and in the UK alone the total now stands at over 35 million!

In 2002 Jacqueline was awarded the OBE for services to literacy in schools and from 2005 to 2007 she was the Children’s Laureate. In 2008 she became Dame Jacqueline Wilson.

Reviews

[Kerri · Rating 5 out of 5]

My phone started updating just as I was proofreading my review, which promptly disappeared, so this is my second go, and it's going to be brief now since I want to go to sleep!

I watched the TV movie version of Double Act last night and really enjoyed it, so today I decided to reread the book. Even after seeing the same story just hours ago, I still absolutely love it!

Jacqueline Wilson is one of my favourite authors, and my copy of this is very loved!

[Holly · Rating 3 out of 5]

A lot of people loved Double Act by Jacqueline Wilson. Regarded by many as being one of her better written titles, it's still popular nearly twenty years after it was first published.

In fact, I've seen a lot of people lately clamouring for a sequel. "What,' they ask, "happened to the twins afterwards?"

But as for me, I don't want to know. I'm not interested in a Double Act sequel, for one perfectly good reason.

Ruby will probably end up dead.

After you've finished reading that sentence a few times (and no, you're not seeing things,) allow me to explain.

I always thought the point of Double Act was that the prospective step-mother, Rose, is A Nice Person After All, and that that was what the reader was supposed to discover along the way with the twins. But upon reading it again as an adult, I find out that I am Wrong.

Very, very wrong.

Wilson is a genius of a kind very few have seen this generation. Why this book didn't win the Pulitzer I will never know. This is one of the great thrillers of the 20th century - you just have to be an adult to see it.

Actually, speaking as an adult, it's much easier to see what a complete and utter piece of shit the father is, too. Richard - no doubt named so for being a prize dick - is one of the most selfish parents in the Wilson-verse. His form of selfishness is just a bit more subtle than the likes of Sue from Diamond Girls, or Tracy Beaker's mum Carly.

Throughout the entire book it's clear that Richard is going through a sort-of early-onset mid-life crisis.

From the beginning we learn that he spends his time filling the entire house with books, knowing full well that his mother-in-law has arthritis and finds it hard to get around. He brings a prospective girlfriend home without even bothering to discuss it with his daughters first (daughters who traumatically lost their mother three years previously). He then goes on to buy a shop, not thinking to take his daughters to see it first, or to even ask their opinion on a matter that has everything to do with them and will probably affect them the most. If you weren't already in awe of his selfishness, he even manages to dump his mother-in-law - who spent the last three years raising his kids for him - into sheltered accommodation. Alone.

What a prick.

So what causes this change? Obviously Richard is entirely responsible for his own prickish behaviour, but the catalyst is Rose, his slightly dotty new lady-friend who sells bric-a-brac. That kind of says it all, really.

If Richard is one of Wilson's more subtle crap parents, Rose is an even subtler villain. After gaining entry into Richard's life, she proceeds to leave her mark on him by changing the way he dresses, buying him crazy new clothes and throwing out his old ones. She even starts to call him Rick, a name no one has ever called him before and is done, no doubt, in order to feed into his mid-life crisis. Rose, it's called 'enabling', and it doesn't help.

Phase one of the plan is an immediate success, as Richard is made redundant because of the ridiculous clothing Rose bought him, which no doubt alerted the rest of the office loud and clear that this man was going through a mid-life crisis.

Now that Richard is unemployed, she's able to plant the idea of the bookshop into his head, thus leading to phase two - prising him away from the clutches of his mother-in-law. She then isolates him in the countryside. Not only that, but as they both live and work at the shop together, she can keep an eye on him all day.

Rose has already performed an amazing feat. She's got her man, defeated a powerful rival, and dragged her prize into the wilderness.

It would all be perfect if it weren't for those pesky twins.

After finding out that passive acceptance of their antics doesn't go very far in winning them over, she uses her numerable wits to surmise that the best way to defeat them is to divide and conquer.

The twins have a row early on in the book, and Rose tempts Garnet downstairs with a kids movie and chocolate. She's no doubt figured out that Garnet is the weaker twin, more easily influenced and taken in. However, the twins make up and her plan is, for now, spoiled.

So then fate throws her another chance, and her Guardian newspaper has an advertisement for identical twin girls to audition for a TV show. She leaves it lying on the kitchen table innocently, knowing that Ruby in particular is likely to grab at it. If the twins become TV actors, they'll spend a good chunk of the summer holidays away filming, which will act as a temporary measure until she figures out how to get rid of them permanently.

She encourages them when Ruby announces her plan to go to the audition with Garnet, only it is Richard who foils everything this time. First, he says he won't allow them to become actors - incidentally, not because he doesn't want his kids exposed to the cut-throat world of showbiz, but because he 'can't stand showy-off child stars', which would no doubt deplete all his recently racked up street cred. When the twins run off to the audition on their own, he gets there just in time to put a spanner in the works. Drat.

But finally, Rose is rewarded for her patience. And it is the girls themselves who rescue her plans from the abyss. Hoist by their twin petards!

After applying for a scholarship to a prestigious boarding school, Garnet is accepted, Ruby is not, and the sisters' relationship is irrevocably altered. Rose encourages Garnet to go from the very beginning, knowing full well that she's stirring the pot between the sisters. Once Garnet has left for Marnock Heights, only Ruby remains.

The last we see of them, Ruby and Rose have formed a truce, in which Rose takes Ruby to a drama club on Saturday mornings while she goes shopping. Things are left off here and for good reason; if Rose suggests palming Ruby off to a stage school, even the self-absorbed Richard may start to notice something. There are only two choices left to Rose: frame Ruby for murder and have her locked away in Borstal, or just up and kill her. As the first could lead to a revenge attack involving the twins switching places during a prison visit sometime in a blissfully unaware future, the second option is tidier and ties up all loose ends. After all, Richard won't mind losing Ruby once he sees the new Harley Rose has bought him. And hell, he still has Garnet. Twins are pretty much the same person anyway. Like clones or something.

So thank you, Wilson, for sparing us from a sequel that would be of truly grimdark proportions. And once again allow me to salute your subtle genius that still, books and books later, goes almost completely undiscovered.

[Megan Baxter · Rating 3 out of 5]

Oh, what I will read in the chase for that elusive and dubious honour of having read all the BBC's Big Read books. (I have 13 more to go!) If not for that, I probably never would have discovered Jacqueline Wilson - I missed these books when I was young, and they're not the sort of things I would have otherwise stumbled upon as an adult.

Note: The rest of this review has been withdrawn due to the changes in Goodreads policy and enforcement. You can read why I came to this decision here.

In the meantime, you can read the entire review at Smorgasbook

[[ J o ] · Rating 1 out of 5]

Read as part of The Infinite Variety Reading Challenge, based on the BBC's Big Read Poll of 2003.

Better than her other tripe but still a bit naff. Full review to follow.




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[Sophie Crane · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a fantastic book. It is about twins named Ruby and Garnet, Ruby is quite bossy and confident while her sister Garnet is quiet and shy. The twins' mother died when they were only 7 years old (3 years ago) so they miss having a mother to go to when they are feeling sad. One day their father meets a lady who is called Rose and she becomes the twins' step-mother. Ruby and Garnet end up moving with Rose and their father which neither of the twins is happy about, but everything around them is changing maybe it would be better if they stopped being such a double act. I really enjoyed this book and I would definitely recommend this book to readers aged 9+.

[Shahrun · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love Jacqueline Wilson books because they don't shy away from real life. She gets deals with real things many kids go through on a daily basis, in an easy to understand way and accessible way. This book is about identity. How to be yourself when you are considered by all (even yourself) to be inextricably part of a pair. This is true for all relationships - not just the identical twin stars of this book. It also touches on a new member joining a family (after a loss). As an adult reader I was not only entertained, but informed.

[Fredrika · Rating 3 out of 5]

3⭐️ read via audiobook.

A fun, quick nostalgic read. I love that these books are available to me now, as I absolutely loved Jacqueline Wilson as a kid! I couldn’t remember much of this one, so it was a nice refresher and small book between my other reads. Ruby was a little annoying and definitely the more overbearing twin - honestly couldn’t stand her for much of this book. But it shows real life scenarios of how siblings are, how parents find new partners after one passes away and all the children see is their mum being replaced. I appreciated the different voices in the audio so you could tell which twin was speaking!

[Kikijanika · Rating 3 out of 5]

I got this book as a Christmas present from my mother. It was kind of a joke because I have a twin sister and my mother knows I like to read a lot. It's a short book and quick to read, so it was the first of the books I got this Christmas, that I decided to read.

*SPOILER ALERT*

This book was exactly what I expected it to be. A fun story with and important theme about growing up and finding one's own identity. I can imagine I would have liked it a lot when I was younger. It still had some appeal, mostly because it tells about twins and some of the thinks did apply very well to me and my sister as well. Especially the beginning of the book was kind of funny.

The story in itself was ok. It did have some parts that annoyed me, like the girls sneaking out on their own in order to audition for a tv-show. But I get it's meant for younger readers so I didn't let it bother me. Both Ruby and Garnet annoyed me in a way because some of their character traits were a bit too strong. I get the point, though, because as the story progresses both girls seem to grow up and accept themselves as they are. They also learn to see themselves as individuals instead of two halves of an entity. This would be a good book for middle-grade readers and especially for twins, of course.

[Leila · Rating 4 out of 5]

It was a lovely story about two twin sisters and their little adventures together. Close to the end of the book the story took a big turn that was very sudden but it was very satisfying.
I would definitely recommend reading this book. It's short and fun with a sweet message delivered to the reader.

[Kelly · Rating 4 out of 5]

Such a wonderful children's author. I sometimes was jealous at how bossy Ruby was and had to have a stern word not to be so shy and more like Ruby. But also a stern word as I hated any shouting and adults as a child 🤣

[Laura · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book when I was going through my Jackie Wilson phase. I think I perhaps read it four or five times throughout my childhood and early teenage years. I also recall listening to the fantastic audio book on tape!

Ruby and Garnet are identical twins, but couldn't be more different. They live with their dad and stepmother, their own mum having died some time before. Wilson is an expert at creating realistic characters and is probably the closest thing you can get to actual being inside a child's mind yourself.

Wilson tackles difficult topics that sadly affect a lot of children, such as bereavement, domestic abuse and divorce. Somehow, she manages to see these important issues through a child's eye. Her own words could have easily been my own thoughts as a child.

I believe all young children, and particularly girls, should read Wilson's work. One of my greatest memories of reading at a young age was curled up with one of her books, next to a huge stack of her other books just waiting to be devoured.

[Chloe Reads Books · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was cute, but didn't blow me away!

[Ria]

Omg this book was my entire personality aged 7 and I never related to anyone more than Ruby in this book, until My Sister Jodie came out a few years later. Jacqueline Wilson will forever be an ICON

[Josie Feltham · Rating 5 out of 5]

It was so comforting to reread this as an adult. Jacqueline Wilson doesn't shy away from real things and although this book is mostly silly fun with a dual narrative from two twins, it deals with the death of their mother, sibling relationships and rivalry, and separation anxiety. Reading so much JW as a child / tween is actually probably why I'm like I am now if I think about it........

[Lisa Smith · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am a big Jacqueline Wilson fan and as a child read her books continuously, over and over again. Double Act is about 2 twins and there mum died when they where little and they live with their dad and Nan. But one day her dad comes home saying he has met this lady called Rose. The twins Ruby and Garnet hate her the first time she sees her, which is when their dad brings her home to have tea, out off the blue and their Nan tried her best to be nice to Rose. Then her dad suddenly announced that they where moving to the country with ROSE, and that there Nan is going to be put in a home. Ruby and Garnet hate the idea, that means that they will have to change schools and they will have to live with Rose. They start a new school and hate it. But one day they see on the notice board a poster about a modelling thing so they go there on a Saturday, but there dad find's out and Garnet get sent to a boarding school and Ruby doesn't ...
This is an excellent book and I would recommend it in any KS2 classroom. Jacqueline Wilson is an excellent writer and she makes her books fun and easy to understand.

[Oonagh Grant · Rating 4 out of 5]

healing my inner child😌 looking back on it, ruby is so toxic and i don't think jacqueline wilson gets what it's like to be a twin, but this was a really funny read!

[Paige · Rating 5 out of 5]

Love this book! It’s sad how they fall apart and then Ruby realises how much she needs Garnet

[Riya Joseph Kaithavanathara · Rating 4 out of 5]

Are there any twins here? How do you feel when you are not with your other twin?

DOUBLE ACT is a beautiful story of Ruby and Garnet written by Jaccqueline Wilson (@jacquelinewilsonfanclub , @jacqueline_wilson_official ). This story is written in the form of a diary entry of the twins Ruby and Garnet. After their mother Opal's death when they were just 7 Ruby and Garnet were looked after by their grandmother who they lovingly call gran and father Richard. Ruby and Garnet love each other very much and starts writing about themselves and events from their life in a book found at home, so that when in the future they become famous they can look at it.

Ruby is the one who is elder by 20 minutes and shows dominance in her behaviour but she is highly protective of Garnet. Garnet on the other hand is into reading and quiet the submissive one to Ruby. As Rose, a women their dad loves comes into their life, three years after their mother's death, they find it hard to digest. They just wish it was gran, dad and themselves. They also starts calling her "Rosy Ratbag" among themselves. When Richard and Rose decides to go live in the country side they are deeply annoyed. They play pranks on Rose and in the end decide to go for an audition for acting because Ruby wants to be an actress in the future but Garnet doesn't want to be. Yet she tags along, since the audition was for twin 10-14 year old girls. But then Garnet couldn't perform and they loose the opportunity. Then another opportunity comes when they send a letter to the headmistress of Marnock Heights, a boarding school. This time Ruby does all the talking because she thinks that garnet will screw things up but when they get a letter from the headmistress they come to know that Garnet is selected for her writing skills which portrayed maturity. This causes jealousy in Ruby and she moves apart from Garnet. Garnet is deeply disturbed and decides not to go but Ruby reminds her that even if she doesnt go to the boarding school, Ruby and Garnet will not be the same again.

[Tatevik · Rating 4 out of 5]

I found a new favorite children's author!

This was a heartwarming book to read. I got emotional, I laughed, and I cried. And I am a tough reader, you know. It's not easy to make me cry.
4.5 stars. Not as perfect as Ms. Cleary's books, but I know I will be reading her books one after another now!

[Helen Arnold · Rating 4 out of 5]

omg I don't know why I can't read anymore. Still ,managed to enjoy this throwback! I had completely forgotten how this was written, in twin style. two voices, two characters, kind of multi-modal in that way. also, loved Ruby's act of self determination at the end. in a way, pretty experimental from the old Jackie W. She should revisit this next!!

[Maeve Mulchrone]

read omw to the clurb. just so good innit!!!!!

[Jess · Rating 3 out of 5]

I spent 4 hours reading this to my little sister last night. I did all the voices and expressions (its important to me that people know this I was putting in the Work) I loved this book as a kid (and a twin) My sister inherited the book off me and liked it just as much. The way Ruby was aggravating me off tho oh my god, leave Garnet alone, girl!

[Pilnas rokas grāmatām [Grēta] · Rating 4 out of 5]

Laba grāmata.Dažreiz bēdīga.Šājā grāmatā var ļoti labi redzēt kā ir ja ir dvīnis.

[Saadia Munshi · Rating 3 out of 5]

Double act by Jacqueline Wilson

This book is about two young twins Ruby (the lively confident one) and Garnet ( the shy quiet one). It appears that ruby is the twin that makes all the decisions and it is Garnet that follows her lead. Whilst the the two were young their mother died which resulted in them and their dad moving in with their gran.

Sooner their dad meets a someone called rose and they end up moving to the village to open a book shop, much to the annoyance of the twin girls and their gran. The girls hate rosie and do not treat her with respect at all.

Ruby dreams of being an actress one day and sees an add in a paper for twins to take part in a commercial held in london, however Garnet dosent want to persue a career in showbiz, she prefers to studying. Nevertheless she reluctantly agrees to go along to the audition as ruby persuades her to do so. Having failed the audition ruby decides that she wants to go to boarding school because of the stage and velvet curtains, but Garnet is not so keen. The girls also find that there is a huge fee that needs to be paid for the pair of them, something which their dad cannot afford. Thy find out however that ther is one scolarship available subject to entry tests. After undertaking a tour and doing various tests its found that ruby did not get the scolarship but it was infact garnet that did. Ruby is very upset for a while amd doesnt talk to garnet. But as she leaves for boarding school they make up and promise to write to eacher often.

This book is a great read for upper KS2 children, and I think that it is something that is better enjoyed as an independent read as opposed to a class book. This is a book that maybe mainly appeals to girls, but also towards chikdren who may be experiencing divorce. Jacqueline Wilson is great at portraying adult issues in childrens context.

[Natasha]

Hi everyone! My first book review is on Jacquline Wilson’s Double Act. As a child I was never a big fan of the Jacquline Wilson books; I found her “matter-of-fact” attitude towards reality somewhat bleak. I was therefore pleasantly surprised that I thoroughly enjoyed reading the Double Act.

The Double Act is about ten year old identical twins Ruby and Garnet who are exactly the same! Or are they? They look the same, act the same and weigh the same and yet their personalities are very different. Ruby is funny and outgoing whilst Garnet is studious, sensitive and shy. These differences soon become apparent in various hilarious circumstances.

Wilson has this incredible ability to adopt the mind-set of the two young girls, hence the whole book is written in journal form. A great read for KS2 students; the story of Garnet and Ruby is a brilliant example of how to overcome the problems of everyday life.

The twins face many difficulties, from changing schools, to stepping out from a siblings shadow, and even dealing with a new step mother...Wilson leaves no stone uncovered!

[Imas · Rating 3 out of 5]

Kisah sepasang kembar identik dengan kepribadian yang sebenarnya berbeda. Namun salah satu dari si kembar memonopoli alias dominan terhadap saudara kembarnya. Apapun yang dikerjakan harus sesuai dengan kehendaknya, sementara kembar lainnya lebih banyak menurut.

Banyak mendengar dan membaca bahwa kembar apalagi identik itu memiliki ikatan batin yang kuat. Demikian pula dengan kedua kembar ini. Dengan latar belakang keluarga yang "tidak sempurna", sikembar menjalani kegiatan disekolah dan dirumah dengan banyak kebandelan.

Dari beberapa buku Jacqueline Wilson yang aku baca, beliau memang sering menulis dengan latar belakang keluarga "tidak sempurna" , bagaimana anak-anak menghadapi masalah ditengah keluarga seperti itu dan bagaimana orang tua dan lingkungan menyikapinya mungkin bisa menjadi semacam masukan.

Kata anak saya sih...mama bukunya seru...tapi agak cemas juga dengan penjelasan kenapa ayah mereka sudah tinggal serumah dengan pacarnya padahal belum menikah...

[Siobhan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Wilson is great at making realistic characters that you can quickly come to term with, giving realistic reactions to events.

Her books are great at getting children to really think about actions and their consequences, really opening the eyes of children to the world. Some of her books are sensitive reads yet they are all great at sending life messages to children.

I feel as though Wilson books are a must in the lives of young children, a way of opening their eyes to the real world in the right way.

[umrah : castiel · Rating 4 out of 5]

Needless to say, I loved this book as well. It made me quite emotional at the end of the book when the twins had to separate for one to attend a school. I really loved the portrayal of the twins, the fact that their personalities were completely different from one another, but they still ... clicks.

[Casey Sacco · Rating 4 out of 5]

Such a beautiful story about sisterhood, and the ups and downs that go with it ❤

[Ciara K · Rating 3 out of 5]

A Wilson book that I actually can’t remember reading but know that I did read as a child. I don’t know how I feel about the girls, Ruby seems very much self centred and Garnet is certainly overpowered by her “older” sister; even though they’re identical twins. I think I related to and liked Garnet more than Ruby but yeah it was a weird story. Their dad seems to have just been taken up completely with this new Rose and quite possibly going through a mid life crisi. He let this Rose completely change him; leaving his job, changing his clothes, calling him a nickname that no one else does, encouraging him leaving his job and moving his kids away. He even put his vulnerable mum with arthritis into sheltered accommodation completely alone when she quite clearly needed support. It was honestly for me a sad story, I’m glad that Ruby and Garnet made up in the end that they seemingly had a better relationship by the end