11 Birthdays: A Wish Novel

Wendy Mass’s 11 Birthdays is a work of fiction aimed at an audience of middle-grade readers. The story focuses on the journey of Amanda Ellerby and her best-friend-turned-enemy, Leo Fitzpatrick, who find themselves doomed to repeat their 11th birthday until they repair their friendship. The novel falls under the genre of magical realism and explores the themes of Friendship, Rejection, and Fitting In, as well as The Power of Forgiveness and Magic and Fate. Mass, who writes for audiences of children, preteens, and teenagers, is a New York Times bestseller and the recipient of multiple awards. 11 Birthdays received the William Allen White Award, as well as a 2009 Library Guild Selection. Other works by Mass include Jeremy Fink and the Meaning of Life, Every Soul a Star, and The Candymakers.

This guide is based on the Scholastic 2010 edition.

Plot Summary

When Amanda and Leo were born 11 years earlier, Angelina, an eccentric old woman from their town of Willow Falls, advises their parents that the two children should celebrate their birthdays together every year, and that they will be the best of friends.