Attached at the hip terally njoined 16-year-old twins Tippi and Grace have outlived every prognosis for their life span. Employing free verse to chronicle their coming of age, British author Crossan (Apple and Rain, 2015) smoothly embeds historical and medical information regarding her well-researched topic while intently portraying each twin's personality and unique characteristics. Younger, ballet-dancing sister Dragon, earnest Mom, drunk Dad, and free-spirited Grammie comprise their whole world until homeschooling funds run out and Tippi and Grace enter a local New Jersey private school as scholarship students. Their first friends ever, the pink-haired, HIV-positive Yasmeen and sweet, humble Jon, dutifully introduce them to raucous teen fun while serving as vigilantes against bullying and pure ignorance. When separation surgery becomes a potential reality, crucial questions of individuality, friendship, love, and commitment are explored. Crossan trusts her characters and her readers to find their better selves through her gently paced story.

Gr 9 Up-Crossan's latest is written in free verse and follows two sisters through their unique high school experience as they make the most important decision of their lives. Tippi and Grace are "literally joined at the hipunited in blood and bone." While they have two heads, two hearts, two sets of lungs and kidneys, and four arms, they are one from the waist down. They are happy together; they embrace life and could not imagine being separated. That is, until their doctor recommends separation as the only fighting chance for them to survive an illness. They must then consider the dangerous operation that could kill them. The author successfully depicts what it is like to be two and then what it is like to be one. Readers will be taken on an emotional roller coaster throughout this book; feelings range from contentment and joy to desolation and anxiety. The supporting characters such as Tippi and Grace's first and subsequently best friends, Jon and Yasmeen, greatly add to the touching plot. Fans of Jandy Nelson's I'll Give You the Sun (Dial, 2014) will appreciate this lyrical world. VERDICT A homage to the love between sisters that readers will remember for a long time. Morgan O'Reilly, Riverdale Country School, NY