A summer of wild rides and change

While “Thirteen Plus One’’ contains cuteness and gushing one could live without, it compensates with strong writing, fast-moving storytelling, and likeable characters. Myracle gets the moodiness and loneliness of 14-year-olds; we feel for Winnie, even her cranky side.

Winnie begins her 14th year with a “To Do Before High School List’’:

“Say out loud what I want out of life/ Be spazzy/ But also practice being older somehow/ Do something to help the world, like that Three Cups of Tea guy/ Figure out who I am/ Become friends with someone new/ Talk to Amanda. Or do something with Amanda/ Take charge with Lars!/ Have a deep moment with Sandra before she goes to college/ Do something scary/ Admit it when I’m wrong/ Make a prediction and . . . / Have it come true!/ Don’t die/ Peace out!’’

The best bits of “Thirteen Plus One’’ reside in its loony touches of humor, like this one with younger brother Ty at her sister’s graduation:

“Mom handed me a fresh Kleenex and I leaned forward to blow my nose. I stayed down there for a while, just sniffling a little and gathering myself, until I felt a papery wisp on the bare skin between the bottom of my blouse and the top of my gray skirt. I glanced over my shoulder to see Ty holding his program over the back part of me.

“ ‘What are you doing,’ I whispered.

“ ‘I don’t want anyone to see your bottom crack,’ he whispered back.

“I frowned at him like what the? Yes, I had a few pairs of jeans that sometimes crept down too low, especially if I squatted or leaned over. But the waistband of my skirt didn’t do that, I was ninety-nine percent sure.

“ ‘Ty,” I whispered, ‘no one can see my bottom crack.’

“He patted my leg with the hand not holding the program. ‘I know. You’re welcome.’ ”

Myracle has an ear for lyricism — stars are “distant bright glimmers in a sky as inky-dark as the ocean” — and most of all for voice: “So, and then, yeah. I left Amanda’s and the moon rose. The crazy, beautiful moon.” One looks forward to Winnie at 15.