It was lovely to read this one to my daughter and reminisce, but also to see how different it seemed to me reading now as an adult. 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! I didn't really like the morals in the book - feeling like you can't move on from a friendship or have other friends, eating everything in sight to the point of throwing up because you won't politely say no, an unwillingness to share, etc.

Everything seems ruined when Alice's father gets a new job hundreds of miles away and the whole family has to move. this book is about two best friends that if you ever saw them you would think that they were sisters. However, Gemma received the most punishment, being the more boisterous of the two, was always deemed as the trouble maker and was forbidden to see Alice. However, Gemma grows insecure when Alice is excited to show off her new pink bedroom and large house.

When the cake Gemma has made and brought is presented at dinner, Alice requests that she and Gemma cut the cake together and make their traditional wish. i recommend this for 7 - 10 years old Gemma and Alice are two very different girls but that doesnt stop them bieng bffs but when Alice mooves to Scotland how will Gemma cope? This book would be suitable for upper KS2, ages 9 and up, and is ideal for independent reading rather than reading as a class as it is likely to appeal to girls rather than boys. This wasn't my favourite JW novel, however, I did appreciate the allusion to other books ( Tracy Beaker and Biscuits from Cliffhanger).

One weekend, Gemma’s granddad agrees to take Gemma to Scotland to see Alice but the day ends in disaster when Gemma, in a fit of jealousy, throws a cake at Flora’s face.

Her insightful and emotionally challenging books not only stretch reading ability, but give young readers a glimpse into many kinds of lives. The girls are obviously displeased, as they will no longer be able to see each other as often so decides to run away with only ten pounds between them. She appears traumatised when she and her parents move away to Scotland, having been parted from Gemma.