Twins

Twins (2020) is a middle grade graphic novel written by Varian Johnson and illustrated by Shannon Wright. When identical twins Maureen and Francine Carter start middle school, they must navigate new academic challenges, shifting social dynamics, and a journey of individual growth, all while maintaining their unique bond of sisterhood. When both girls run against each other for the position of student council president, their sibling rivalry reaches an all-time high, and they must renegotiate their relationship with each other and adjust their extracurricular priorities. Twins explores the myriad challenges of starting middle school and examines how sibling relationships evolve amidst the adolescent journey toward self-discovery.

This guide refers to the paperback edition published by Graphix in 2020.

Plot Summary

Twin sisters Maureen and Francine Carter are starting middle school (sixth grade). Maureen is nervous because, due to a “computer fluke,” most of her classes are separate from Francine’s, and she also has to take Cadet Corps. Maureen graduated at the top of her fifth-grade class with Francine close behind, but Maureen is very shy and isn’t sure that she can face the prospect of classes or lunch without her sister. Meanwhile, Francine has adopted a new wardrobe that she hopes will distinguish her from Maureen, but people still cannot tell them apart. Francine also starts using the nickname “Fran.” Maureen eats lunch alone in the library and struggles with Cadet Corps, but her crush, seventh-grader Bryce, is the Cadet Corps class leader, and he is nice and encouraging. Fran enjoys chorus and is planning to run for student council president. Maureen starts to feel better when she succeeds in her classes, but she eats lunch alone for several days in a row. One day, Fran is busy after school (allegedly with chorus practice, but she is actually undergoing tutoring), so Maureen goes to the mall with their mutual friends: Monique, Nikki, and Tasha. Maureen worries that Fran is pulling away from her and doesn’t want to be part of their friend group anymore.

Maureen continues to struggle with Cadet Corps, especially marching, and is at risk of receiving her first B in a class. The teacher, Master Sergeant Fields, offers her extra credit if she runs for any position on the student council, which should help with her “self-confidence.” Master Sergeant says that this is what Maureen’s parents were hoping for when they signed her up for Cadet Corps. Maureen is furious at her parents because she believed that she was in Cadet Corps because of a “computer fluke.” In reality, her parents intentionally put her in separate classes from Fran. Maureen talks to Fran about this, and Fran admits that she requested to be in separate classes because she wants to be her “own person” and is tired of being indistinguishable as a “Carter twin.” She also feels too competitive with Maureen when they’re in class together. Maureen feels betrayed, and the next day, she submits her application to run for student council president against Fran.

Fran is busy again after school, so Maureen goes to the mall with Nikki and Tasha. They ask a shop attendant for help, but the shop attendant (who is white) ignores them and helps a white customer instead. The customer points out that the three Black girls were waiting for help first, but the attendant dismissively says that they probably won’t buy anything anyway. The customer leaves the store and suggests that the girls follow suit. Nikki’s mom is furious when she hears about the incident, and she evidently spreads the word until the store goes out of business.

Maureen avoids letting Fran know that she is also running for president. At school, a teacher announces the candidates, and Fran gets angry that Maureen did not tell her that she is running for the same position. Two students from Cadet Corps, Amber and Richard, offer to help Maureen with her campaign and invite her to sit with them at lunch, and she happily eats lunch in the cafeteria with other students for the first time. At home, Mom and Dad say that both girls can run for student council as long as they don’t run smear campaigns against each other or argue about it. However, the girls start arguing almost immediately, so their parents make Maureen move into the former bedroom of their older brother, Curtis, who is an adult and has already moved out. This is the first time the twins have slept in separate rooms.

Monique is on Fran’s campaign committee, which annoys Maureen. Maureen comes up with a “buddy system” idea for her platform, in which incoming sixth graders would be paired with seventh graders who would help them to adjust to middle school. Bryce introduces Maureen to the seventh-grade president, who helps her to develop this idea. Amber and Richard help Maureen to make campaign posters using a photo of Maureen in her Cadet Corps uniform to distinguish her from Fran. They also include a photo that was taken when she won an Earth Day essay contest last year.

Maureen’s campaign poster gets vandalized, and someone writes “barf face” on it. Maureen assumes that Fran is the culprit, because last year, when she was supposed to read her Earth Day essay in front of the school, she got so nervous that she threw up on her outfit, but nobody knew about it except Fran. Therefore, Fran took Maureen’s place and read the essay for her, and nobody knew the difference. Fran later admits that the poster offended her because she finally felt like she was good at something—public speaking—even though Maureen is the one who always wins academic awards. However, Fran never got credit for this speech because everyone thought that Maureen gave the speech. However, she didn’t vandalize the poster, but she did tell her P.E. class about the vomiting incident. Mom and Dad ground Fran and ask her to drop out of the race, but Maureen wants Fran to stay in it because otherwise, she’ll never know if she could have won.

Dad thinks that things will go back to normal after the election is over, but Maureen doubts this. She continues avoiding Fran until she discovers that Fran has been receiving tutoring for Math and Social Studies after school and not attending chorus practice. Maureen reconsiders her past actions and realizes that Fran has always felt insecure about her father’s habit of labeling her “the speaker” instead of “the thinker,” which is Maureen’s moniker. Both girls apologize to each other for their deception and misdeeds, then start working together to practice their campaign speeches. Maureen gets nervous, but she delivers it successfully after encouragement from Fran.

Fran wins the election and is disappointed that Maureen didn’t win after working so hard. However, Maureen is happy for Fran. Fran implements Maureen’s “buddy system” idea. Maureen and Fran attend the school dance with their old friends Nikki, Tasha, and Monique, as well as Maureen’s new friends, Amber and Richard. Bryce asks Maureen to dance, but before dancing with him, Maureen dances with Fran instead.