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Finding Ruby Starling

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Finding Ruby Starling

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Overview

The Parent Trap comes to the digital age in this delightful new novel by the author of The Encyclopedia of Me.

When Ruth Quayle used a special app to search for pictures of herself online, she found dozens of images of "Ruth Quayle" -- and one of "Ruby Starling."

When Ruby Starling gets a message from a Ruth Quayle proclaiming them to be long-lost twin sisters, she doesn't know what to do with it -- until another message arrives the day after, and another one. It could be a crazy stalker ... but she and this Ruth do share a birthday, and a very distinctive ear....

Ruth is an extroverted American girl. Ruby is a shy English one. As they investigate the truth of their birth and the circumstances of their separation, they also share lives full of friends, family, and possible romances -- and they realize they each may be the sister the other never knew she needed.

Written entirely in e-mails, letters, Tumblr entries, and movie scripts, Finding Ruby Starling is the funny and poignant companion to Karen Rivers's The Encyclopedia of Me.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780545534826
Publisher:	Scholastic, Inc.
Publication date:	08/26/2014
Sold by:	Scholastic, Inc.
Format:	eBook
Pages:	304
Lexile:	800L (what's this?)
File size:	7 MB
Age Range:	9 - 12 Years

About the Author

Karen Rivers writes rich and funny novels for middle-grade readers, young adults, and the occasional grown-up. She lives in Victoria, British Columbia, with her two children and a noxious-smelling dog. Visit her online at http://www.karenrivers.com and @karenrivers.

Read an Excerpt

Dear Ruby Starling, I'm not stalking you. And the pics are the proof that I'm not crazy. Although it might be hard to tell that I'm not crazy from that first one. Don't be afraid! That stain on my shirt is just ketchup. (My BFF, Jedgar Johnston, and I were making our first-ever movie, "Zippy The Zombie Squirrel," an animated-horror film that was both totes hysterically funny and totes terrifying. You can watch it on YouTube! And judge for yourself!)

From the B&N Reads Blog

Page 1 of

Editorial Reviews

07/01/2014
Gr 5–8—After doing an image search on herself, Ruth Quayle finds pictures of a girl who looks like her double. Ruby Starling is also 12 ¾, but unlike Ruth, living in America with adoptive parents, she lives in England with her birth mother. The novel is told in a series of emails between the girls and to and from their friends and families.The emails are full of slang that works for both girls' cultures and feels surprisingly authentic. Interspersed with the emails are Ruth's poems, posted to her Tumblr page, and Ruby's handwritten letters to her dead Gran. Readers travel through the emotional journey of discovering an unknown twin while trying to navigate the normal tween life of best friends and maybe boyfriends. Both girls have trouble understanding why their mother kept Ruby and gave up Ruth but in the end find that reconciliation is possible. The emotional content of the novel comes through in a genuine and natural way; readers will feel for each girl as they discover each other and the truths about themselves. The other characters are only lightly sketched, but their relationships to the twins add depth to the readers' understanding of the girls. Overall, a fun book for middle graders.—Genevieve Feldman, San Francisco Public Library

School Library Journal

08/18/2014
Rivers's (The Encyclopedia of Me) epistolary novel conveys both the unique intimacy created by writing letters (or, in this case, emails) and the thrill of discovering an unknown family member. When 12-year-old adopted New Yorker Ruth Quayle plugs a photo of herself into a search engine, she's shocked to find images of what appears to be an identical twin living in England. She sends an enthusiastic missive to the girl, Ruby Starling, who is initially skeptical but soon becomes convinced that Ruth is her sister. Both girls get migraines and find small spaces comforting, but otherwise their lives are very different. Ruth writes poems and is working on an animated documentary with her best friend; Ruby is into fashion, crushing on a pop star, and prone to panic attacks since her grandmother died. The two make plans to meet, but are nervous to discover why they were separated. Amid a flood of escalating emotions, the emails exchanged among the girls and their friends and parents blend to create a lively chorus of voices. Ages 10–14. (Aug.)

Publishers Weekly

Praise for The Encyclopedia of Me:"Rivers has created a warm, funny, fast-paced story about an endearing middle schooler who keeps her cool and sense of humor when events spin out of control." — School Library Journal, starred review"Cleverly woven through the titular encyclopedia . . . is the touchingly real and often humorous story of a preteen's struggles with family, friendship and first love." — Kirkus Reviews "Tink's first-person narrative is vibrant and exuberantly opinionated, whether she is describing life with her hairless cat or pondering the meaning of her first kiss." — Publishers Weekly

From the Publisher

A trio of narrators is the perfect match for this epistolary novel. Nora Hunter brings equal parts trepidation and enthusiasm to the voice of 12-year-old Ruth Quayle, an adopted child who discovers she may have an identical twin living in England. Through a series of email and social media posts, the truth slowly unfolds. Charlotte Cole and Hunter give the two girls a heartfelt connection, and their emotional “tween-speak”—with both British and American accents—will have listeners chuckling. Liam Aiken applies a calm, level-headed tone to Ruth’s best friend, Jedgar, who attempts to keep Ruth’s emotions in check. Also notable is Susan Duerden as Ruby’s mom, Delilah, a flighty artist whose lackadaisical approach to parenting rings true. M.F.T. © AudioFile 2015, Portland, Maine

APRIL 2015 - AudioFile

A trio of narrators is the perfect match for this epistolary novel. Nora Hunter brings equal parts trepidation and enthusiasm to the voice of 12-year-old Ruth Quayle, an adopted child who discovers she may have an identical twin living in England. Through a series of email and social media posts, the truth slowly unfolds. Charlotte Cole and Hunter give the two girls a heartfelt connection, and their emotional “tween-speak”—with both British and American accents—will have listeners chuckling. Liam Aiken applies a calm, level-headed tone to Ruth’s best friend, Jedgar, who attempts to keep Ruth’s emotions in check. Also notable is Susan Duerden as Ruby’s mom, Delilah, a flighty artist whose lackadaisical approach to parenting rings true. M.F.T. © AudioFile 2015, Portland, Maine

APRIL 2015 - AudioFile

2014-04-30
A separated-at-birth story for the digital age.After plugging photos of herself into FaceTrace (a fake but plausible Google-like image search), American Ruth Quayle, age 12 2/3, discovers that she might have an identical—and stylish—twin sister in England named Ruby Starling. Just imagine: "The very same set of cells! But with an accent! And good fashion sense!" Through a series of "amazeog" and "totes" expressive emails and a few letters that use conversational slang from their respective cultures, the girls explore the possibility with each other and close friends before approaching their families. While their communications voice typical preteen concerns, such as finding best friends, whether they're ready to kiss boys and not wanting their parents to treat them like children anymore, it becomes increasingly emotional as Ruth wonders about the how and why of their situation. Adopted and given a transplant heart soon after birth, Ruth can't help but feel unbearable anger and sadness toward a biological mother who gave her away. With the help of her "real" parents, her father's attempts to "Buddhify [her] life," her poetry tumblr and a newfound sister (and best friend), she finds forgiveness and an expanded circle of love. And maybe boys are kissable after all!Totes bittersweet. (Fiction. 10-13)

Kirkus Reviews