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Jersey Tomatoes Are the Best    by Maria Padian Amazon.com order for
Jersey Tomatoes Are the Best
by Maria Padian
Order:  USA  Can
Knopf, 2011 (2011)
Hardcover, e-Book

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* * *   Reviewed by Lyn Seippel

Henrietta Lowell and Eva Smith have been best friends since they were six. These two gifted athletes have a friendship that has remained constant throughout their childhood. Sixteen-year-old Henry is an ace tennis player and Eva is an accomplished dancer.

They are both upcoming stars. Henry is offered a scholarship to a renowned tennis clinic in Florida and Eva is accepted to a summer ballet school in New York. One thing they have in common is a parent who pushes them to do well in their sport. Henry's dad is her tennis coach and isn't happy that she's going away to a tennis camp without his approval. Eva's mother is an overbearing stage mother who drives Eva to auditions, stage productions and ballet school. Both parents want only the best for their daughters and will do whatever it takes to get it for them.

Henry and Eva tell their story in alternating chapters allowing their contrasting personalities to come through. Though they are separated by miles, when Eva is hurting, Henry knows she must go to her despite the consequences her leaving tennis camp may have on her future career.

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