Peters writes realistic fiction and she creates characters with whom kids can easily identify. Her realistic dialogue gives Jazz and Antonia depth and meaning to the issues that concern them. She also uses humor to help define her characters but does not allow her lighthearted tone to detract from the meaning of the text. Teenagers often laugh and joke about serious issues to cover up their sensitivity toward them. So Peters uses humor to make her characters more human and more likeable.

This humor and lightheartedness also helps support her theme of the deception of appearances.

Though many authors have centered their novels on contrasting characters, Peters's characters seem fresh and their concerns timely. She explores new angles to age-old themes, such as introducing the peer counseling program as a safe way to allow her characters to reveal their feelings. Because Antonia narrates the story, her...