MAKE LEMONADE is a believable contemporary fiction novel about the relationship between two young women. The story is told from the point of view of LaVaughn, a young girl working hard to get prepared for college. Jolly is a seventeen year old mother of two, struggling to make ends meet. When LaVaughn begins to baby-sit for Jolly, both girls learn about and from each other.

The characters are very believable because the author allows us to see their flaws as well as their beauty. Neither character is all bad or all good, as no person in life is one or the other. The dialogue between girls flows and they break out into laughter at odd moments, like teenage girls do. The interplay between mother and daughter is also realistic, because it seems LaVaughn really respects her mother, but she is still exasperated and angered by her at times. Even the exchanges between LaVaughn and Jolly's children ring true.

The story is organized into very short interludes that allow the reader to understand the development of the situation over the course of the school year. A novel for older readers, MAKE LEMONADE presents complicated issues of teen pregnancy, poverty, and single parenting among others. However, these issues are presented as part of the story, as they are part of life, and not as the story itself. A worthwhile read, it will leave the reader wanting to know more about these characters and how their lives turn out.