Books with title Dear Del

Fran, who lives on a Scottish island, is thrilled to hear that Del is coming from Glasgow for a holiday under a scheme to give a break to disadvantaged children. It'll be so great to have a real friend, to share everything - or so she thinks. But the bedraggled girl who staggers off the ferry on a wild afternoon is not what any of the family expected... A fantastic story from award-winning author Alison Prince, about two very different girls who form an unlikely friendship that will change their lives.

Twelve year old Amanda should be the happiest girl in the world. She is the daughter of wealthy, successful parents, lives in a six bed-roomed mansion and attends a prestigious private college.What more could she ask for? However, Amanda is beseiged with problems. She is lonely, 'fat and frumpy', suffers from depression and has low self-esteem. BUT, her biggest fear is of Cassandra and her gang of bullies who torment her every waking hour.The catalyst in the story enters in the form of Emma, a paraplegic girl, gifted with a marvellous singing voice. Then enters the Fairy Godmother, Amanda's grandmother, who grants Amanda's greatest wish.Follow Amanda's journey from 'poor little rich girl' to realising her dreams.Amanda's story is one of empowerment. Her story opens up possibilities to discuss the many topics which are important to our young people of today or it can be read purely for enjoyment.

'Dear H' by Diane Guntrip has a universal theme, that of bullying. It is written as a diary by Amanda to an imaginary friend, H, and details 12 year old Amanda's emotional roller-coaster as she encounters bullying on a daily basis. Amanda's background would suggest she has everything materialistically that a young girl could wish for. However, she is lonely, finds difficulty in confiding her problems to her parents who are so wrapped up in their business lives that they fail to read the signs of conflict their daughter is battling on a daily basis. As a result of the bullying, Amanda also suffers from depression and low self-esteem. However, Amanda has a secret, her passion is singing and writing song lyrics and this leads her to eventually fulfil her dream. Of course, she could not do this without the help of her first friend, Emma, a paraplegic who shares the same love of singing, and a grandmother, who is not only supportive but who can arrange for Amanda to have the secret singing lessons she so craves. The book fictionalizes situations that in reality are distressing to many students. At the same time, it is empowering as we read of the development of Amanda from 'poor little rich girl' to realising her dreams. The book opens a whole spectrum of discussion points.

Fran, who lives on a Scottish island, is thrilled to hear that Del is coming from Glasgow for a holiday under a scheme to give a break to disadvantaged children. It'll be so great to have a real friend, to share everything - or so she thinks. But the bedraggled girl who staggers off the ferry on a wild afternoon is not what any of the family expected... A fantastic story from award-winning author Alison Prince, about two very different girls who form an unlikely friendship that will change their lives.