It's 1993. Beth McMaugh is eleven years old and about to start Year Six. Her best friend, Ashlee, assures Beth that it is going to be the best year ever, but then why is she sitting with the popular girls? When the new strange, nerdy kid, Jools, befriends Beth, she is swept up instead into the School Nerd Club.

Behind everything is a secret from Beth's past, a secret so terrible it stays with her, every day. Making the spirals come. And there was that day at the beach. Is that why Ashlee doesn't want to be friends? Is that why her Mum avoids her? Has Beth ruined everything?

Can a nerdy girl with mismatched socks, a rebellious punk, a popular boy and a science fiction movie help set it right?

Real Friends, by Shannon Hale, meets Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell, meets The Friendship Matchmaker, by Randa Abdel Fattah, this is a story of growing up, of friendship, of finding your tribe and unlocking your hidden talents ... plus Star Wars.