The two were lonely and seeked refuge in each other for moral support. The two girls realise that they have things in common and though they are in two completely different institutions, the friendship is stronger than anyone would think.
In the novel, the emotive language is a very sensitive subject that is used and is for the reader and of course the composer. The relationship between the two girls is so strong that it seems that they can overcome almost anything, as long as they are together and they have each other's friendship. " the second worst thing in the world would be if you decided to stop writing to me but the worst thing would be if anything happened to you." Pg 143-44.
Because Tracey is in a detention centre, her hard attitude and rebellious streak helped her to cope better at Garrett. This showed that Mandy's influence on Tracey was positive as she cared about her friend. The two girls shared such a strong bond that when Mandy stopped writing, Tracey became worried about her and although she got all the letters that she wrote back to her. .
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Like all teenagers, when Tracey and Mandy wrote to each other they would use colloquial language to communicate. The language that Tracey uses can be violent and rude at times as it makes her sound "Soph got busted with some bombers this morning so it's all happening here." Pg 119. The colloquial language used is a characteristic of teenage communication techniques. Tracey and Mandy use casual terminology. "Keep on Goin" till it stops Flowin" " Pg 48.
The author of this book, John Marsden accidentally became an author. He has had a variety of jobs and in 1985 he was teaching a year 9 class and they did not show any interest in his teachings. So, he tried writing a short novel for them that he thought they might enjoy. From there, the rest is history. John Marsden could have possibly based the characters on students from his class and used them to portray 15 year olds and what they are experiencing.