These Bodies Between Us

A wistful coming-of-age story with a haunting twist about four friends who spend their summer learning to become invisible--but disappearing comes at a cost. For seventeen-year-old Callie and her best friends Talia and Cleo, every summer in their small North Carolina beach town is as steady as the tides. But this year, Cleo has invited enigmatic new girl Polly to join them, creating waves in their familiar friendship. And Cleo has an idea, gleaned from private YouTube videos and hidden message boards: they’re going to learn how to make themselves invisible. Callie thinks it’s a ridiculous, impossible plan. But the other girls are intoxicated by the thought of disappearing, even temporarily--from bad boyfriends, from overbearing families, from the confusing, uncomfortable reality of having a body altogether. And, miraculously, it works. Yet as the girls revel in their reckless new freedom, they realize it’s getting harder to come back to themselves… and do they even want to?

About the author

Sarah Van Name grew up in Raleigh, North Carolina and now lives and works in Durham with her family and dog. She is the author of two young adult novels, The Goodbye Summer (2019, a Junior Library Guild pick) and Any Place But Here (2021).

Summary

This wistful coming-of-age story with a speculative twist follows four friends who spend their summer learning to become invisible—but disappearing comes at a cost.

Four girls. Four girls skating home, both sides of the road, fearless. Four girls at the mouth of an infinite ocean, sugared and salted with sand and seawater, the tide licking their sunburned feet.

This summer, they’re going to disappear.

For seventeen-year-old Callie and her best friend Talia, every summer in their small North Carolina beach town is as familiar and steady as the tides. Their long-distance friend Cleo arrives from DC, and they spend their days lazing on the sand and their nights working at the local roller-skating rink. But this summer, Cleo has brought along Polly, an enigmatic girl who shakes up the dynamics of the group. And Cleo has a proposition, gleaned from private YouTube video tutorials and hidden message boards: They’re going to learn how to make themselves invisible.

Callie thinks it’s a ridiculous, impossible idea. But the other girls can’t help but be intoxicated by the thought of disappearing, even just temporarily—from bad boyfriends, from overbearing families, from the confusing, uncomfortable reality of having a body altogether. When Callie gives in and they finally try it, miraculously it works.

Yet as the summer progresses and the girls revel in their reckless new freedom, they realize it’s getting harder and harder to come back to themselves. And, for some of them, do they even want to?

Report

A lusciously crafted and achingly poignant story about girlhood with a haunting twist that readers will savor. You won t soon forget it. Kathleen Glasgow, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Girl in Pieces

"Spellbinding... Readers might be tempted to disappear alongside this kaleidoscopic foursome." K.L. Walther, New York Times bestselling author of The Summer of Broken Rules

"A gorgeous, wistful meditation on the pleasure and pain of adolescent girlhood, friendship, and the magic of summer." Dahlia Adler, author of Cool for the Summer

"An absolutely stunning exploration of the invisibility and heartbreak of being a teenage girl. I literally couldn t put it down." Nita Tyndall, author of Who I Was with Her

 "A beautiful and sometimes haunting narrative that will appeal to readers of both realistic and fantasy fiction."  School Library Journal, starred review

"A suspenseful story of friendship and magic."  Kirkus Reviews

"Haunting." Publishers Weekly

"[T]his evocative summer novel has precisely the right blend of haunting fantastical elements and down-to-earth realism as Van Name explores body dysmorphia, male-gaze culture, queerness in the South, and the unbreakable bond of teenage friendships." Booklist

Product details

• Authors: Sarah Van Name
• Publisher: Delacorte Press
• Languages: English
• Age Recommendation: from age 12
• Product format: Paperback
• Released: 12.03.2024
• EAN: 9780593810453
• ISBN: 978-0-593-81045-3
• No. of pages: 336
• Dimensions: 140 mm x 210 mm x 21 mm
• Subject: Children's and young people's books > Young people's books from 12 years of age