Dear Tracey
I don't know why I'm answering your ad, to be honest. It's not like I'm into pen pals, but it's a boring Sunday here, wet, ever... read full description
reviews
May 17, 2010
Amore
rated it: 
I'm a bit disappointed. I mean, I thought this book was going to be interesting and revealing. It is revealing but... woah, you can tell a guy wrote this book. The language is really immature at times. I cannot believe that some adults look at kids in this way. I would want to be seen as something more. I have more to offer the world than my body. I have a mind, I have goals, I have opinions.
Nov 07, 2011
Aimee
rated it:
It was a very creepy story and I don't recommend reading the entire thing Halloween night (or any night). The book was only 146 pages and it left a lot of questions unanswered, which I sometimes like, but there was too much confusion at the end of this book. John Marsden is an Australian author and the story took place in Australia (which wasn't officially established so, we had to do some googling).
Description from inside the book~ "Two teenage girls. An innocent beginning to friends More...
Description from inside the book~ "Two teenage girls. An innocent beginning to friends More...
Jul 29, 2010
Maggie
rated it:
Here are the issues I had with this book:
-The two main characters have virtually indistinct voices, and similar enough situations that it's confusing trying to remember who's talking. One is supposed to be quiet and shy but since they're pen pals, the author chose to make her write...shyly...It comes off as weird and phony.
-The book is very eighties--not that that's a bad thing. But the piece isn't period enough to be historical fiction, and if you're not reading closely, or if More...
-The two main characters have virtually indistinct voices, and similar enough situations that it's confusing trying to remember who's talking. One is supposed to be quiet and shy but since they're pen pals, the author chose to make her write...shyly...It comes off as weird and phony.
-The book is very eighties--not that that's a bad thing. But the piece isn't period enough to be historical fiction, and if you're not reading closely, or if More...
Mar 04, 2011
Susan
rated it: 
The original Cliffhanger. I loved this story completely though I think a lot of it is because when I read this book I was blown away by the unexpected ending and not just that it was unexpected but just that it left you wishing like anything Marsden would have written just one more letter.....
The combination of letter writers/ charaacters in this book was also interesting, both from vastly different backgrounds you somehow get the feeling their lives marry up fairly closely despite More...
The combination of letter writers/ charaacters in this book was also interesting, both from vastly different backgrounds you somehow get the feeling their lives marry up fairly closely despite More...
Jun 10, 2011
Georgie
rated it:
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers.
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Apr 05, 2010
Sarah
rated it: 
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers.
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Oct 17, 2011
Little
rated it:
Another book recommended from my best friend, which she picked out and said was spectacular. We have different tastes generally but I liked this book. It was refreshing, not in my usual genre, but interesting.
The letter format was intriguing although it killed me (excuse the pun) in the end because we didn't know what happened, though I guess that Mandy stopped writing because she got killed.
It would have liked to know why Tracey was in jail and he story was amazing and really inte More...
The letter format was intriguing although it killed me (excuse the pun) in the end because we didn't know what happened, though I guess that Mandy stopped writing because she got killed.
It would have liked to know why Tracey was in jail and he story was amazing and really inte More...
Oct 07, 2011
Jill
rated it:
This is a book that takes place in Australia and is about two girls, Tracey and Mandy, who meet through an ad Tracey placed for a pen pal. After trading several letters Mandy starts thinking something isn't quite right. After some relentless prodding, she finally learns that Tracey hasn't been completely honest with her and is not who she seems. The letters continue and the girls continue to get closer to each other. The book ends rather abruptly, but the reader can figure out what happened.
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Jan 19, 2011
Jenny
rated it:
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers.
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Dec 10, 2011
Dayna
rated it: 
Mandy decides to answer an ad in a magazine that asks for a pen pal. She is surprised when she gets a letter from Tracey. As their friendship grows Mandy begins to suspect that Tracey isn't being completely honest with her. Their story is told from the letters they write to one another. As the tale progresses we discover the truth of Tracey and learn about the power of friendship. The ending is a complete surprise and leaves the reader with a host of unanswered questions. A powerful and stunning
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Jun 29, 2010
Keeley
rated it:
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers.
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Aug 11, 2011
Patricia
rated it:
I'm not normally a fan of stories told in the form of letters, but this one was pretty good. I didn't read the book jacket or really pay any attention to the title - just felt like reading another book by John Marsden, so as the story unfolded it kind of took me by surprise. I should look over some of the reviews and see how teens are liking the book, as overall it's quite dark.
Mar 30, 2009
Maureen
rated it:
Argh! Another frustrating teen book that ends with the story wide open. Mandy and Tracey are pen-pals (do pen-pals even exist anymore?). They have very different lives but are tied together by a feeling of connection. That is all any 16 year old really wants, right? A connection. Worth reading but just don't expect it to wrap up neat and pretty in the end.
Feb 06, 2012
I am on page 25, so far what i noticed is that the whole book seems like Mandy and Tracey sending letters back a forth about each other, there secrets, about there family etc.. So far i kinda like the book but i am still interested on it because i want to know If one of them is going to blurb out one of there most personal secrets! ^_^
Cant wait to read more!
Cant wait to read more!
Sep 17, 2008
Susie
rated it:
A greatly written book, in the form of Letter-writing. It's about two girls, who becomes penpals. But one of them gets an awful feeling that the other girl is hiding something from her and never wants to talk about problems. What is really going on?
John Marsden is a wonderful writer that drags the wondering readers into the book. Reading this I thought it felt easy to imagine the girls feelings and.. Yes. Read it!
The first time I read this book was during a skiing trip, a More...
John Marsden is a wonderful writer that drags the wondering readers into the book. Reading this I thought it felt easy to imagine the girls feelings and.. Yes. Read it!
The first time I read this book was during a skiing trip, a More...
Jan 26, 2012
Georgia
rated it:
An incredible book...the atmosphere which is established by the end is remarkably haunting. The book as a whole (but especially the ending) left me a little unsettled...not quite giving you the definitive resolution you would wish for. However, I think half the charm of the novel is its atmosphere of disquiet and simple tragedy. Highly recommended.
Jan 20, 2012
Vivian
rated it:
This book is an easy quick read, but definitely not easy. It will haunt you and affect you, and it is heartbreaking. It will "strangle your heart", as the review on the back of the edition I read said.
It is bittersweet and lovely and, again, heartbreaking.
I read it all in one sitting, two hours on a Christmas night. This is following up on another book that I read today in one sitting, this morning, (nothing to do here at my cousin's house), and wow what a change. This morn More...
It is bittersweet and lovely and, again, heartbreaking.
I read it all in one sitting, two hours on a Christmas night. This is following up on another book that I read today in one sitting, this morning, (nothing to do here at my cousin's house), and wow what a change. This morn More...
May 06, 2011
Marjolein
rated it:
READ IN DUTCH
I bought Letters from the inside in Amsterdam, just before my train departed. I've spent the time in the train to read this little book. And I enjoyed reading it. It has been some time since I read this story, but I haven't forgotten it yet. I liked the story and Marsden's writing style. I'm interested in the other books by Marsden. Last week I went to the library and took the first four novels from the Tomorrow-series.
I bought Letters from the inside in Amsterdam, just before my train departed. I've spent the time in the train to read this little book. And I enjoyed reading it. It has been some time since I read this story, but I haven't forgotten it yet. I liked the story and Marsden's writing style. I'm interested in the other books by Marsden. Last week I went to the library and took the first four novels from the Tomorrow-series.
Mar 19, 2011
sabisteb
rated it:
Ein klassischer Briefromen. Erstaunlich wie spannend eine Geschichte nur durch Briefe erzählt werden kann. Teils schon vorhersehbar, ich wusste sehr früh, was mit Tracy ist und auch dass Mandy was passieren wird, war mir schon sehr bald klar, auch wenn der Schluß eigentlich kopmlett offen belibt. Eine schöne, traurige Geschichte. Wirklich gut.
Oct 10, 2011
A book that starts as a simple exchange of letters between two teenage girls and how they're coping with their lives, yet something seems odd, and suddenly everything is not as simple or as "usual" as it may have seemed at the beginning. A good plot that is not exactly what one first would expect, but still quite good.
Jun 10, 2011
Ana
rated it: 
I'm not entirely sure what I make of this one. Can we say hello, ambiguity? wow. It leaves you hanging, that's for sure. I guess I'm not really giving it 2 stars because I didn't like it, but more because I haven't decided yet how I feel. This book is definitely different from the Tomorrow series by the same author.
Apr 16, 2011
Sarah
rated it:
An interesting 'exchange-of-letters' genre, with a surprise twist. Intended for teens. Don't bother to look for a sequel to explain the ending... there isn't one!
Will be offering to my reading group as we have The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Society, from the same genre, this month.
Will be offering to my reading group as we have The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Society, from the same genre, this month.
Jul 15, 2010
Sally
rated it:
This is one of my favourite of Marsden's novels. The ending annoyed me the first time I read it but I thinkit makes the book. The story is a puzzle for the reader to work out. The ending (or lack thereof) makes the completed puzzle all the more heart wrenching.
Apr 08, 2009
leigh
rated it:
This was an enjoyable quicky read by my pal Marsden.
The ending bugged me to no end. I guess that makes it good somehow… It made me a little crazy, it just ended, no warning no conclusion. Sure I got theories, but I hate not knowing stuff for sure.
Sigh.
The ending bugged me to no end. I guess that makes it good somehow… It made me a little crazy, it just ended, no warning no conclusion. Sure I got theories, but I hate not knowing stuff for sure.
Sigh.
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Feb 20, 2009
Tessa
rated it:
Letters from the Inside was a book with true feeling. I wasn't sure what to expect from the start but when I got into it I love the books. I loved how it wasn't predictable.. It had mystery about it. This book was written with great skill. I recommend to all.
Feb 14, 2009
Sarah
rated it:
I read this in high school and it made me cry. I reread it for my children's and young adult literature class in grad school and it did the same thing. A story about two girls who become pen pals but learn their relationship isn't what it seems.
Jan 27, 2009
Alex
rated it:
A heart warming and heart breaking look into the lives of two very different teenage girls, and how they come to forge the most unlikely friendship. Letters from the Inside is one of those books that will stay with you months, years even, after reading.
Feb 18, 2012
Amanda
rated it:
This is the first time I've ever ahead a book in one day, it was really short though only 142 pages.
I loved this book. I wanted to know more then the story the two girls were telling. Especially when it ended, I wish I knew what happened..
I loved this book. I wanted to know more then the story the two girls were telling. Especially when it ended, I wish I knew what happened..
May 12, 2009
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers.
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Sep 13, 2007
Debbie
rated it:
Tracey places an ad for a pen-pal and Mandy answers. They start writing back and forth to each other, but, at first, Tracey is dishonest about her life. The truth finally comes out (that Tracey is locked up in a juvenile detention center for an unspecified crime). Mandy is shocked at first, but they continue to write and become close friends. Suddenly, though, Mandy stops writing and Tracey is left to wonder and worry. There are some clues as to Mandy's reason for not writing, but the reade
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