Proof of Forever

April 27, 2015
Zoe, Tali, Luciana, and Joy are jaded former best friends from summer camp, each with their own hang-ups and heartaches. One night they converge at a camp reunion, wondering where their friendship went wrong, and are mysteriously transported back to their 15-year-old selves. With one week of camp left, the girls must figure out how to return to the present day. In her first novel, Hillyer, a co-founder of literary development company Paper Lantern Lit, employs the simplicity and levity of a time-travel device to contrast the then and now of her four protagonists, adding a dose of humor to some of the heavier moments of this story—Joy’s secret, Zoe’s uncertainty about her sexuality, Tali’s long-harbored anger, the pressure Luciana feels to be a “good girl,” and the loves and losses each girl faced (and now face again) at camp. While the novel’s ending is somewhat rushed, Hillyer’s third-person narrative is fluid and layered with emotion, sensitively describing the friends’ second chances at a variety of firsts and the strengthened bond they share. Ages 13–up. Agent: Stephen Barbara, InkWell Management.

March 1, 2015

Gr 9 Up-Luce, Tali, Zoe, and Joy were best friends, but after a falling out at the end of their last summer at Camp Okahatchee, they barely speak. At a summer camp reunion, the four friends step into a photobooth for old time's sake and are sent back in time two summers earlier to when they were 15. This event will hopefully give them a second chance at romance, finding themselves, and, most importantly, mending their friendship before they leave for college. A quintessential summer novel, this contemporary work mixes in a bit of sci-fi with the time-traveling photobooth. All four characters deal with realistic emotions and a variety of experiences, including a father's dubious business practices, budding sexuality, and the desire for independence. The girls are all likable and relatable. The plot is slow to unravel, but the pace is perfect, allowing for the climax to pack a powerful punch. This novel will appeal to fans of Sarah Dessen, Jennifer E. Smith, and Ann Brashares. VERDICT Hillyer has penned a tale ideal for readers seeking something sweet tinged with a hint of sadness.-Paige Garrison, Aurora Central Public Library, CO

Copyright 2015 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

April 1, 2015
Four high school friends on the verge of college attend a reunion party at Camp Okahatchee, the site of many life-changing experiences during their formative years. Each girl has a different motivation for wanting to attend the party. Spoiled rich girl Tali intends to hook up with Blake, but a car accident reconnects her with a former camp counselor. Brainy Luciana, on the Princeton track, is setting up a romantic anniversary with her equally nerdy boyfriend. Tomboy and fencing champ Zoe hopes to resolve troubling personal issues related to sexuality. Joy, who brings the disparate group together for urgent motives of her own, confuses her friends with her mysterious activities and allegiances. Taking a group photo in the camp photo booth for old times' sake magically catapults them back to camp five days prior to an earlier reunion two years ago and transforms them physically into their younger selves. Once they have grasped the situation, they realize that they are in danger of being permanently trapped, Back to the Future-style. The path to their successful re-entry into the present is a somewhat chaotic, action-filled journey in which important life lessons are learned. The third-person, present-tense narration shifts focus from girl to girl, driving those lessons home. A quick, enjoyable read that should resonate with readers on the cusp of adulthood, especially former campers. (Fantasy. 14-18)

June 1, 2015
Grades 8-11 Imagine a do-over in your teen years. That's what Zoe, Luce, and Tali get when Joy entices them to return to Camp Okahatchee for the annual reunion. But when the former best friends awkwardly enter the photo booth to update their two-year-old snapshot, they are spirited back to the last week of camp and all the drama-filled events of the summer they were 15. Convinced that they must replicate all the props seen in the old photo in order to return to the present, each girl subtly changes the situations that both led to their friendship and caused the rift in it. The time-travel trope is simply a vehicle for telling a story of growing up, first love, and facing disappointment as the four eerily relive a formative summer. An edgier, more risque version of Ann Brashares' Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants (2001), Proof of Forever features four authentic teenage voices and unique perspectives that will encourage readers to reevaluate their own friendships, love interests, and philosophies of life.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2015, American Library Association.)