Their part of Manhattan is known for its museums, shopping, galleries, performance venues, restaurants and of course parks; Central Park and Riverside Park play important roles in the story.

The girls are each 13 years old and in the seventh grade. In order to protect their identity we can’t show you a full-length picture of Brooke and Piper

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Brooke

Brooke is an avid reader and loves fantasy novels; going to the library is a favorite activity. She's kind of messy and would rather read than clean her side of the bedroom she shares with Carly. Brooke loves basketball and runs with her school's Girls on the Run group; she ran a 5k with them last spring. Brooke hates the color pink. 'It's for wussies' she once said although she changed her mind a bit after she met Piper, something of a girly-girl, but it's still a color she would never wear herself.

Brooke Robbins lives with her father Bruce, her older sister Carly and younger brother Gabe. Her family has a strong naming tradition and each new child is named for someone from an earlier generation. Eighteen months before our story begins Brooke's mother Erica died in a biomedical engineering laboratory accident at Columbia University. Although the family grieved together, little was said about the cause of the accident which remains a mystery. The death was very hard on the family and Brooke became a lot less sure of herself after her mother's death. Things seemed to change so much, including her inner confidence.

At P.S 444 Brooke takes after her parents by loving Science. She's pretty good at Math too and enjoys Art, something she shares with Piper. Social Studies, ELA, Brooke tolerates. Seventh grade boys at school seem so immature except for ones like Paulie who love science the way she does. She's never felt close enough to any of the girls in her grade to have a friend to confide her thoughts and feeling with. With Piper she's found one.

Piper

Piper is the only child of Sandra and Jeffrey Lewis. Her mom, who she always calls Mother, works as an editor for a book publisher in Midtown Manhattan; her father travels a lot for business although Piper has never been sure exactly what his job is. Over the summer her parents separated with her father staying in their old apartment on the Upper East Side of Manhattan and Piper and her mother moving to an apartment near the top of a new luxury high rise building on the Upper West Side. Recently Piper lost touch with her father who no longer answers texts or email and doesn't respond to FaceTime calls. Her mother won't answer questions about his whereabouts and safety and tries not to appear concerned.

Piper loves theatre and particularly musicals. New York's Broadway theatre district is a a perfect place to see shows and Piper with theatre loving school friends often stand in line to get day-of-show, half-price tickets from the TKTS booth to catch a matinee performance. Each year Piper auditions for her school's spring musical and has been getting better and better parts. She's a natural performer and often practices her parts and songs in front of a full length mirror, but mostly when her mother's not a home.

Piper's a bit dreamy in class, probably thinking about boys or landing the top role in a production, but she’s always surprised with her good grades because she never seems to try very hard. Piper’s more of a social animal; she loves catching up with friends at school and on social media when she's at home or the bus, cab or subway. Pink is her favorite color.