We Used to Be Friends

Gr 9 Up–Kat and James have been inseparable best friends since the two girls met in kindergarten, but by senior year everything has changed. Kat, reeling from a breakup with Matty, meets Quinn and begins to question her sexuality and who she wants to be. Meanwhile, James has her world turned upside down when her mother announces that she and her father are separating. Kat and James find themselves facing big life changes...alone. By the end of the year there’s no avoiding the question of whether they somehow missed the biggest change of all—the end of their friendship. James shares her story starting at the end and going backwards, while Kat starts at the beginning and moves forward. The result is a captivating snapshot of a friendship that many teens will relate to. Spalding explores important questions while lyrically weaving the two stories together. When did it happen? How did happen? Why did it happen? Or perhaps the scariest question of all—did it just happen?