“The Go-Between” by Veronica Chambers is a novel, where a sixteen-year-old girl has a life-changing move. It starts off with Camilla, Cammi for short, who lives a lavish lifestyle with her telenovela star mother and blockbuster voice actor father. When her mother gets a chance to act in an American show, they fly via private plane, to Los Angeles, where she embarks on a journey that will change her life. At her new school, Polestar, she befriends Willow and Tiggy. They can be very racist at times to Cammi because of her Mexican descent, but Cammi never confronts them, nor tells them about her wealth, to maintain normalcy. This leads to her living a double life and lying to the ones she cares about the most. In the story, the author uses the main character, Cammi, as both the antagonist and the protagonist to create character development within her. The author uses this literary style to depict how Cammi ultimately became her own downfall but also shows how she was able to pick herself up after losing her friends and her sense of self, by being her.

Before moving to Los Angeles, Cammi’s life in New Mexico was glamorous, but with the fame from her mother many people used her. She found a friend Patrizia who shared the same life as her. Her parents were famous as well, so she did not view Cammi as everyone else did, she and Cammi were equals. To Cammi this sounded like a perfect friendship, however, it became was one-sided. Patrizia is insecure and hurts Cammi to try to feel superior and often picks at Cammi’s insecurity by always stating that, she’s the hot one (Chambers 23). Despite Cammi suffering from a toxic relationship, she tries to see the good in Patrizia and does her best to be a loyal friend, even under her miserableness. Patrizia even goes as far as “selling secrets about  [Cammi’s] mother”, when she finds out about Cammi’s mom substance intake (Chambers 39). Cammi, being the positive and naïve person she is, still tries to be patient and devoted, due to her being afraid that she will never find someone who doesn't see her for her celebrity status.

Although Cammi’s character has many honest and good qualities, she can also be seen as treacherous and disloyal. While in Hollywood, Camilla’s friends, Willow and Tiggy, accidentally are out of line a few times. “Assuming her mother is a domestic” (Chambers 92) and believing that she “snuck across the border” (Chambers 91) are evidently hurtful to Cammi. However, she had no right to come up with a devious plan and lied to everyone for five months until she got exposed. Cammi “never intended to lie to Willow and Tiggy” (Chambers 96) nor “being a pretend chola girl from the barrio” (Chambers 96), but she continues to deceive her so-called “friends”. When Milly, a schoolmate, and friend who is also Mexican, tells her to tell the truth several times, she listens to her thoughts and knows that she “should have said… “My whole Cammi from the ‘hood thing has been one big lie.” Instead [she says], “Well, while you guys were hanging in Palm Springs, I was keeping it real in East L.A.” (Chambers 156). Cammi understands the stigma around being a Mexican at Polestar, but she abides by the stereotypes that are being spewed by the people around her, which makes her as bad as them. After Milly exposes her for being a wealthy celebrity, she still has the nerve to blame her deception on accidental racism that she experienced in her months there.

Chambers chooses to help Camilla’s character grow by turning her villainous actions into a savior of in the story. When her friends turned against her because of what she had done, Cammi “didn’t know how [she] was going to make up for all the lies told, but [she] knew that [she] needed to do more than apologize.” (Chambers 176). After working on her friendships for days, (Chambers 182), Cammi managed to earn truthful relationships with Willow and Tiggy. It was harder to gain back Milly’s trust, but with her good and caring qualities she had, Cammi was able to make their bond even stronger. Even though she knows what she’s done was unforgivable, she chooses to show her remorse and rebuild her friendships.

Throughout the story, Cammi goes through many highs and lows. From being the “it-girl” in New Mexico, who tries to save a friendship to being excluded by her own friends due to lying. Camilla is portrayed by the author as a protagonist and antagonist throughout the story. She uses the attributes of both to help her navigate her life in a foreign place. Cammi uses her duplicity to her advantage, by getting her out of tough situations. She realizes that coming forth with the truth is better than keeping up with a façade, and it is always better to be your own person.