Wonder

Miranda’s parents divorced when she was in the ninth grade. Describing her mother, she says, “My mother is the kind of person who has a happy face for the rest of the world but not a lot left over for me” (236). Despite this, Miranda wants to help her mother get through the divorce. Her camp experience turns out to be awful. And for some reason, Miranda lies about who she is. She tells people, for instance, that her brother is “deformed” and that she has a dog named Daisy. She now feels horrible and knows Via would be angry about these lies, but they actually help her popularity. She begins hanging out with popular girls at camp who change her into someone else. When she returns home, she reaches out to Ella about her experience. Deep down, she feels that Via would most likely judge her, but Ella doesn’t mind hearing about the racy things she did.

Miranda’s friendship with Via changes completely. She and Ella badmouth Via to make themselves feel better, but she knows she and Ella are in the wrong, not Via. When they do interact, it’s awkward. She notices when Via gets a boyfriend, so she goes out with an athlete even though he doesn’t really seem into her.