TRU CONFESSIONS

Tru, 12, keeps a journal on her mother's computer about what goes on in her life, and most of it is typical preteen stuff—school, friends, boys. She also writes of her two great dreams: to have a career in television, either in front of or behind the camera, and to use that career to investigate and film the latest research activities that might lead to a cure for her beloved twin brother, Eddie, who is developmentally disabled. An ad for a local cable television station's contest for aspiring television producers thrills her, and she sets to work on the essay, outline for a potential show, and demo tape. Her early efforts are polished but dull, so she is inspired to film Eddie himself. Tru wins, but her victory is bittersweet, for she realizes that any sort of ``cure'' for Eddie isn't very likely. This warm, funny debut has well-developed characters and a fast-moving plot. The dollops of computerese that appear in the journal will entertain the computer-literate, while the tale itself, about differences, family, friends, and the pain of growing up, will satisfy everyone else. (Fiction. 10-13)