The Other Sister

By S.T. Underdahl

Josey Muller's regular life--studying with her best friends, planning for the Hollidazzle dance, and gossiping about hot guys--is shaken like a snow globe when her parents drop an A-bomb: she has a sister Pressured to give up the baby they conceived in high school, her parents are overjoyed to reunite with Audrey. Even Josey's brothers are cool with it. No longer the only daughter and the "smart one" in the family, Josey struggles to accept her infuriatingly friendly, witty, and talented older sister. But feelings of betrayal and jealousy threaten to boil over when she learns that Audrey is on her way to becoming a psychologist, Josey's life goal. Just when she's given up on ever feeling like a sister to this stranger, a new side of Audrey is revealed . . . and their real-life nature versus nurture experiment offers a fresh start for them both.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0738709336
• ISBN13: 9780738709338
• Release Date: March 2007
• Publisher: Flux
• Length: 256 Pages
• Weight: 0.60 lbs.
• Dimensions: 8.0" x 0.8" x 5.0"
• Age Range: 12 to 18 years
• Grade Range: Grade 7 to Postsecondary

Customer Reviews

The Other Sister

An amazing story that keeps one very interested throughout. The characters have a way of pulling you into their world and put you in their shoes. Definitely a great read for anyone.

Courtesy of Teens Read Too

Everyone hopes that they have a normal family with very little or no secrets among them, and for Josey Muller, it seemed like she had that life. She had a mother and father who loved her and two brothers who, although they can sometimes drive her crazy, care for her, too. But then Josey's life turns upside down when her parents tell her that her brothers aren't the only siblings that Josey has. Josey also has a much older sister, Audrey, the daughter that her parents had to put up for adoption, hoping that she would get a better life. Audrey is getting married and thought that this would be the perfect chance to find her birth parents and possibly even meet up with them. At first Josey is perfectly fine with the whole ordeal; that is, until the day she will finally get to see her sister draws near, and the entire situation becomes all too real for her. Josey's entire life that she was so used to was officially going to change. She wasn't going to be the only daughter and sister in her family, and her parents are beginning to forget about how she feels. What's worse is how Josey's dream of becoming a psychologist has already been accomplished by her older sister, which only makes Josey feel inferior to Audrey. The only way Josey can deal with these occurrences is to take a step back and truly see not only how she feels but also how her sister feels. But will Josey give this situation a chance? THE OTHER SISTER was completely real and meaningful. Having Josey as the main character just gives the book the perfect tone it needs to truly capture the essence that a teenager would feel when something unexpected pops up in their life. A very unique story with an ending that was surprising and perfectly written, THE OTHER SISTER was a great debut from S. T. Underdahl. Reviewed by: Randstostipher "tallnlankryn" Nguyen

Anxiously awaiting the next book!

My very first thought when I finished the book was that I wished it hadn't ended. I wanted to keep reading about Josey and Audrey's life as they both grew older. I'm hoping there's a sequel! I highly recommend this book for all ages.

A very enjoyable read

This is a very well written book with excellent character development. I enjoyed the interactions between Josey and her friends and family. The author did a very good job of dealing with a sensitive issue without being preachy. I would recommend this book to all ages.

A wonderful story

The idea that someone else - rich and famous and permissive - is your parent is a common childhood fantasy. The idea that someone else is your sibling is NOT, however. When the new sibling is beautiful and smart, a young girl's life can suddenly seem turned upside down. This is the premise of Underdahl's well-crafted novel about 16-year-old Josey, whose parents never told her that she was not quite the only girl in the family. When her adopted-out older sister, Audrey, is reunited with the family, Josey has to deal with a host of new feelings, many unpleasant and difficult, and a re-arrangement of family relationships. Underdahl's characters are well-rounded and likable. Josey's interactions with her friends are believable peeks into the lives of teenaged girls, and her parents are complex in their longing for and delight in their first child, while understanding the difficulties that Josey is having accepting this new view of them and the family. I'm older than the target "young adult" audience, but because of Underdahl's excellent writing (and also because I once was a 16-year-old girl), I found "The Other Sister" engrossing and found that I was really caring about the characters and their situations. Although this book is a must-read for any person whose life has been affected by adoption, it is also a genuinely good story that had me absorbed from the first page to the last word. I give it my highest recommendation.