I really enjoyed this! I mean, it’s hard to listen to it because we’ve all been through middle school and the friendship dynamic shifts and realizing people aren’t who we thought they were, WE aren’t who we thought we were, but I loved the introspection. I loved the need to know and discovering that hey, some of this is totally my fault and I need to make these changes, but also, some of it is a lack of communication and some is just…life! I thought it was great.

Eleni had a rough time at summer camp, but she’s heading home now to her BFF Sylvie. She got to camp, ready to have a great time with her best camp friend Maddy, but instead Maddy had become obsessed with soccer and spent all her time with her teammates. But now Leni is back home, and she’s got some great ideas for Sylvie’s upcoming birthday party.

But Sylvie just wants to spend time with her new friends Annie, Zora, and Paloma. Leni gives Sylvie her ideas for the party—a backyard movie with popcorn and special tents for the girls to sit in. But when the day of the party gets there, Leni realizes that not only did Sylvie ask her new friends to come early to help set up but she also invited them to stay for a sleepover afterward. Leni feels left out and alone, and she wonders what’s going to happen when school starts up. It’s their first year at middle school. Will she have any friends at school?

In the week between Sylvie’s party and the first day of school, Leni thinks back over some of her old friendships and why they had stopped. Her friend Charlotte moved away, so that one’s not as hard to figure out. But she used to send time with her neighbor Will. And with Brenna from Hebrew school. Why was she not friends with them anymore? Eleni decides to figure out what has happened to her friendships. And she decides to start with Charlotte.

Leni loves stationery, so she picks out a favorite and writes a letter to Charlotte. She thinks that if they start talking again, maybe Leni can figure out what went wrong between them. But she has bigger problems. School is about to start, so not only does she have to worry about who will be her friend there, but there is also the overnight. The sixth graders go on an overnight trip, and Leni has been planning this with Sylvie for years. There is a costume party, and Leni wanted to choose a costume that went with Sylvie’s. But now she has no costume ideas just for herself, and she doesn’t know who she is going to room with.

But then school starts, and she finds herself hanging out with some new friends. She starts talking to Adelaide, the daughter of one of her mother’s friends. Adelaide is a little older, so she can help Leni get some perspective with her new friendship project. And Charlotte writes back, helping Leni feel her friendship problems might not be all her fault.

As Leni’s self-esteem grows, her courage does too, and she finds a way to have some very difficult conversations with Brenna and Will. But will she be able to figure out what happened with Sylvie, her best friend? Or will she have to keep wondering what happened?

Dear Friends is a middle grade look at friendships, the ones that last and the ones that don’t. Author Lisa Greenwald takes a honest look at the friendships we have as kids and how we sometimes outgrow them. Leni is a character who faces these relationship questions with courage and a maturity that is usually beyond that of a middle schooler. And that’s exactly why it will be such a helpful book to young woman, to learn about potentially toxic relationships before they can do too much damage.

This is one of those books I wish I’d had as a kid. I was awkward and struggled to make friends, and reading about someone else who struggled and who put in a lot of work to figure out the secrets to friendship would have made me feel far less alone. And it may have helped teach me to be a better friend. Part of the reason I still read middle school books is to champion books like this and try to get them into the hands of kids who need them. I know there are kids out there who will benefit from this book. I hope that they find this book and learn from Eleni’s mistakes and from her courage.

Voice galleys for Dear Friends were provided by Harper Audio through NetGalley, with many thanks.

Dear Friends audiobook by Lisa Greenwald is a middle school coming-of-age novel about friendship. It is a beautiful story that preteen girls will love. The story is sweet and relatable. The author includes beautifully scripted life lessons that pertain to everyday experiences.

Synopsis:
Eleni and Sylvie have been best friends since they were babies. They share many memories of good times. Eleni helps Svlvie plan her 12th birthday party. Finally, the big day arrives, and Eleni is so excited for Sylvie. True to the girl's plans, the party is held in Sylvie's backyard, complete with tents for the outdoor movie night of the girl's dreams. There is a giant movie screen, theater popcorn, balloons, fizzy lemonade, pizza, cake, and Taylor Swift music. It's the perfect event until Eleni discovers that 3 of the girls are spending the night, and Sylvie is purposely omitting Eleni from the sleepover. W-H-A-T? Why would Sylvie exclude her best friend? Eleni is heartbroken and begins her journey to learn the true meaning of friendship.

Dear Friends, the audiobook is available on May 10th. The heartfelt story is perfect for sharing with your children and grandchildren.

Thank you, NetGalley and Harper Audio, for allowing me to review this audiobook. It's the ideal gift for preteen girls. (5 ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐)

This was such a heartwarming and heartbreaking story. It brought me back to my middle school years. Greenwald does a fantastic job portraying the trials and tribulations of what it’s like being a middle school girl. The “girl swirl” that can go on and the hurt feelings that can come from it. Eleni is a very endearing character that I think the readers will root for and hope that she reconciles with her true friends and realize that not everyone is meant to be “friends forever”.

I love the feel of this book! I’m reminded of my overly dramatic and less than perfect middle school years. Dear Friends doesn’t shy away from the awkward feelings of growing up and growing apart from friends. It’s a bittersweet story about the beginning and ending of friendships.


Dear Friends focuses on those awkward middle school years and the feelings of not being included by your friends. This book is about refusing to let best friends go and investigating friendships lost. Once the main character realizes she may have just lost her only friend, she becomes somewhat of a modern day, Harriet the Spy. Dear Friends is an enjoyable, quick read that I highly recommend to middle grade readers.

Name of Book: Dear Friends
Author: Lisa Greenwald
Genre: Middle School Drama
Publisher: Harper Audio
Pub Date: May 10, 2022
My Rating: 4


This middle school story is about friendship and the drama that is so often connected with it!

Eleni (Leni) and Sylvie Bank have been BFF actually before they were born as their mothers are best friends. However, Leni find that that the word ‘ends’ in the word friend. As it seems ‘forever’ in BFF has happened! ~ as Sylvie doesn’t invited Leni to her birthday sleepover.
Leni is our protagonist and we readers feel what she is going through plus is so likeable!

I love how author, Lisa Greenwald incorporates life lessons that can be applied at any age. Totally love the Canasta group!! Additionally I always enjoy reading the author’s ‘Acknowledgments’ as they give us the inside scoop including the author's motivation for writing the story.

Want to thank NetGalley and Harper Audio for this Voice Galley ~ a voice galley is one in which the voice has been synthesized and therefore not the final voice in the audiobook which will be read by professional narrators. This file has been made available to me before publication in an early form for an honest professional review.
Publishing Release Date scheduled for May 10, 2022

Dear Friends was a really touching look at the ever changing dynamics of young girls friendships. Eleni is such a relatable character and I loved that she was so interested in finding out what went wrong within her friendships. I think this book would have a lot of young girls thinking about their own experiences with friendships. This would be a great book for a pre teen book club, and I will be suggesting this as a title for mine.

Voice Galley Review. This is an adorable middle grade book that many tweens will find relatable. Everyone struggles with finding their place and the right group of friends when they make the transition to middle school. Tween will find comfort in knowing they are not alone while they figure out their path. I will be recommending this to my incoming sixth graders this summer who will be making the big move up to middle school.