11 Birthdays: A Wish Novel

Amanda is the story’s narrator and protagonist. The story focuses on her 11th birthday, which she is destined to repeat until she works out how to break the mysterious enchantment. Amanda feels lonely and friendless after her falling out with her best friend Leo on their birthday the year before. She dreads her birthday party that evening, which will be the first ever she has had without Leo and feels insecure about the gymnastics tryouts. She cannot execute a back handspring despite the coaching and encouragement of her best friend, Stephanie. Secretly, Amanda longs to attend the marching band audition, but Stephanie advises her that this is uncool.

Amanda is a dynamic character who undergoes significant growth and change throughout the story. To repair her friendship with Leo, she must recognize and appreciate the loyal friends she has, accept his apology and move forward, and discover the fulfillment of helping others. Once she discovers she and Leo can change the events of their repeating birthday, she can positively intervene in others’ lives. She ensures that her mother and her sister don’t swap their project posters, draws a periodic table for a crying boy who forgot his, and is kind to everyone, even Ruby, who had been rude to Amanda.