In the book, “The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants”, Ann Brashers tells a story about four best friends, Lena, Bridget, Tibby, and Carmen. These girls have known one another since birth. One day, they find a pair of jeans that miraculously fit all of their different body shapes. They all decide to call them the traveling pants and let them travel to each of the girls’ destinations throughout their first summer apart. Regardless of their personality differences, the girls are like sisters. Brashers describes “…Bridget the athlete, Lena the beauty, Tibby the rebel... Carmen the one with the bad temper” (page 7). The story has four points of view, one for each girl.

Lena is very quiet and keeps to herself. She’s easy to love, and is very kind. “Lena’s friends called her Aphrodite, the goddess of love and beauty. The beauty part was more or less on target, but the love part was a joke. Lena was not a romantic” (page 65). During the summer, she visits her grandparents’ home in Village of Oia, in Santorini, Greece. Despite her unromantic attitude, while in Greece she falls in love with a Greek boy named Kostos.

Bridget, or as her friends call her, Bee, is a dare devil and likes to push the envelope. Bridget gets to continue her love for soccer when she attends a soccer camp, near Mulegé, Baja, Mexico. At this summer camp, Bridget falls in love with one of the coaches. “Oh, I’m in love. Did I tell you that yet? His name is Eric. He’s a coach and 100% off limits. But you know how I get” (page 93). She leaps into the relationship head first despite his hesitation.

Tibby’s a very sarcastic and negative person. She is mostly always in a bad mood. “I am dying a slow painful death at Wallman’s” (page 73). She, unfortunately, has to stay in the “Sister's” hometown; Bethesda, Maryland and work at a local convenience store. While working there, she meets a girl named Bailey who has leukemia. They become friends and Bailey teaches Tibby how to live life to the fullest. Tibby goes from a very cold-hearted person to a lovable and caring human being, thanks to Bailey!

Carmen can have short temper at times, and finds herself to be a mean and scary person. “You antagonize people, Carmen reminded herself. You will grow up to be old and bitter. You will wear lipstick way outside the lines and shout at children in restaurants” (page 225). Carmen is staying in Charleston, South Carolina, with her father and his soon-to-be new wife. Much to her surprise, his new family includes this woman’s two kids.

I would recommend this book to any teenage girl seeking a heartwarming, adventurous, and hilarious story about the lives we live day to day. Once you’ve started this book, you won’t want to put it down!