Gwen's mother ran away five years ago. Now Gwen is receiving postcards from her that promise a reunion -- postcards with French stamps and no return address. Gwen is sure that it is only a matter of time before her mother sends for her. Until then, she plans to be a loner. After all, there's no point in making friends you are just going to leave behind. But then Gwen meets Clara, the new girl in the grade eight class, who behaves oddly and is determined to befriend Gwen. But, even though Gwen is drawn to her, the more she finds out about Clara's life, the less she wants to tell about her own. In Gwen and Clara, Sarah Withrow has created two utterly believable thirteen-year-olds who struggle to sort out their place with friends, school and family.