Fifteen

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Fifteen The book Fifteen by Beverly Cleary has taught me that even though the most popular girl act one way to get a guy doesn't mean that you have to act that way, if you just be yourself then you will someday find the person that is right for you. So I am going to tell you a few more of the lesson that I learned from this book that I will always use in life.

In the beginning of the book the main character, Jane Purdy, is thinking about how wonderful it would be to have a boyfriend and exactly how they would meet. She imagined that he would be 16 and have his own car. He would be a little taller than she would, and they would drive around Woodmont in his convertible with her hair blowing in the wind. She imagined looking just like Marcy, the "most popular" girl in school, riding around with one of the "popular" boys in his convertible.

Jane was always thinking of what was wrong with her. Like her job, she is a babysitter and most people at her school would think that that is not a "cool" job. Or that she only has one cashmere sweater, when Marcy wore one practically everyday. She always hated all her clothes, her blouses with the rounded collars that her mother called cute. Well little did Jane know but soon she would be meeting the boy of her dreams and he would like her for her.

One day on one of her babysitting jobs Jane met a boy, he was the Doggie Dinner delivery boy, at the time Jane was all dirty from chasing the dog around the yard and in a very bad situation with the little girl she was sitting with. The boy helped her out with the girl and left. All the time he was there Jane was thinking it was her lucky day, she had finally met a boy, a boy that was a little taller than she was and that was 16. But there was a down side, she never got the boy's name. All that day and days later all Jane could think about was the Doggie Diner boy. She figured that he was new and would be going to Woodmont High in the fall so she would be able to see him. Then she thought that he would like her because he saw her when she was all messy and not having a good time with the little girl.

Later that week she was so excited to find out that the Doggie Diner boy had gone through the trouble to track down her name and phone number because he liked her. He liked her despite the fact that she wasn't having that well of a day. This was the first part of the lesson I learned, even when your having the worst day and look like a mess, a guy will notice you, in a good way, and turn out to like you.

The Doggie Diner boy, Stan Crandall, and Jane started going out on dates and getting to know each other. The first date they went on was the to the movies and Nibley's Confectionery and Soda Fountain. Jane's parents were a little hesitant about letting her go, they finally agreed as long as they didn't ride in a car. Jane prayed that he would have a car and luckily enough he didn't. Jane was so nervous, while he was helping her with her coat she missed getting her arm in about three times, and she felt so childish at Nibley's when she ordered a dish of vanilla ice cream. It wasn't because she ordered ice cream but it was because Marcy came in with her date and they decided to share a booth with her and Stan. Marcy had ordered coffee, which made Jane feel like a little girl. Then Jane felt so left out when Marcy, her date, and Stan started talking about a day at the beach. Later that night after Stan took Jane home some things came clear, after turning off the porch light she heard some rustling in the bushes, it was Stan, he had ridden his bike over and hid it in the bushes. This made Jane realize that she missed getting her arm in the sleeve because it was his first time helping a girl put on her coat. He was so talkative and friendly with Marcy and her date because he was new in town and was trying to find a crowd to hang with. And the most important thing she realized was that he was worried about getting her home and getting himself home on time so he rode his bike over but didn't want her to see it so he hid it in the bushes. This taught me to just be yourself on a date, don't worry about what the other people around you are doing and have a good time.

These are just a few of the many lessons you can learn from the book Fifteen. If you want to know them all you should read the book, it is really good. I know that I will always remember what this book has taught me so I can have fun on dates and know that a guy is really getting to know me, not someone I am trying to act like.