Sweet Dreams #53 Ghost of a Chance and #54 I Can't Forget You

Sweet Dreams #53 Ghost of a Chance, Janet Quin-Harkin, 1984

Meredith Markham's not happy about spending the summer taking care of her sick aunt in Maine.  The weather is miserable, she's stuck inside a spooky old beach house, and worst of all, her boyfriend, Peter, is a thousand miles away.

Meredith resigns herself to daydreaming about Peter and writing to her friends back home—until she meets Nat Franklin.  He seems to be everywhere, haunting her thoughts and haunting her dreams.  She tries to put him out of her mind—after all, she has a wonderful boyfriend, and Nat has a girlfriend, too.  But it's not easy.  Will Meredith be able to stay true to Peter during her summer by the sea?  There's only the ghost of a chance.

This book is the kind of book that I like.  The story is told straight without excessive exposition, and the relationship builds naturally, instead of the reader being told that the girl likes a boy.  Don't tell us; show us.  Let us experience the relationship with the protagonist.  And this book does.

This is an excellent book.

Sweet Dreams #54 I Can't Forget You, Lois I. Fisher, 1983

When Jeri and Kemp went out together last year, they were always going to movies, parties, and dances.  It was wonderful, but Jeri could barely keep pace with the constant activity.  Her grades began to fall.  Finally, Jeri had to make a tough decision between her schoolwork and Kemp—she chose her schoolwork.

For a while, Jeri was sure she'd done the right thing.  Meeting serious, sensitive Ben made her even more certain.  She shared a lot of quiet good times with him, and her grades went up, too.

But lately, Jeri's been thinking about her old boyfriend.  And Kemp still seems interested in her.  She wonders if she was right to break up with him.  Now Jeri's afraid she'll have to make another decision—this time between Ben and Kemp.

And this is the kind of book that I don't like.  Don't tell me about some old boyfriend.  Don't have the protagonist pine after her old boyfriend.  I don't like being told about an old relationship that means nothing.  Let me experience an exciting new relationship with the protagonist.

I did not read this book.