What is the theme in Jumping the Nail by Eve Bunting?

One of the major themes of this book is jumping. People literally jump off the Nail, but there is another kind of jump as well. As Dru says, "There are all kinds of jumps" (Fourteen, p. 153). Jumping is also an emotional jump or taking an emotional risk. For example, Mike asks Dru to stay in California with him. In other words, he wants her to forego her scholarship at Northwestern. To Dru, this is an emotional jump. He does not ask her to jump the Nail, but he asks her to take a risk in her life. Dru decides not to take this jump with him. She goes to Northwestern.