Happy Endings Are All Alike by Sandra Scoppettone

In fact Scoppettone seems almost to be more interested in their suffering than in their happiness. While Scoppettone’s writing is quite enjoyable and her characters are all dynamic, it is difficult to get past all of the negativity that surrounds two girls who simply want to be happy together. The result of this pursuit leads the girls to realize what it would be like for everyone to find out about them and brings the future of their relationship into question. However their happy ending gets threatened when an unknown male antagonist takes an interest in Jaret and begins to pursue her, even going as far as to follow her around. Peggy’s sister, on the other hand, is disgusted and disturbed by the relationship and constantly threatens to tell her father whenever Peggy does or says something she does not like.įaced with the world around them and the approaching end of summer that means going away to separate colleges, the girls try to enjoy as much time together as they can.

She is accepting of the relationship, or at least tries to be, but agrees to keep it a secret from Jaret’s father and brother. The novel opens with the realization that Jaret’s mother has learned of the girls’ relationship by reading the letters that they have been sending one another. While they know that they must keep their relationship a secret, all they want is to be able to hold hands and watch the fireworks like everyone else. It was not long after that they realized they were in love with each other. Jaret and Peggy initially disliked each other, but when their mutual friend forced them into the same room, they quickly became inseparable. The heart of this novel lies in the Scoppettone’s ability to make dynamic and interesting characters. Memorable Quote: “And so what if happy endings didn’t exist? Happy moments did.”

Queer Representation: 2 teenage lesbian protagonistsĪn early queer young adult book that moves beyond the two romantic leads to show the supposed impact of being queer on an entire small town.

Happy Endings Are All Alike by Sandra Scoppettone