Just Listen
Sarah Dessen
Published by: Penguin Group
Pages:371
I found this book at Barnes & Noble.
Annabel was the girl who had everything until a summer changed this. She starts the school year off alone, with no friends. She is lonely until she meets a boy Owen, who also doesn't have many friends. Through the whole book you wonder why she went from having everything to nothing. You then find out at the end that she is raped by who was at the time her best friend, Sophie's , boyfriend. She doesn't tell anyone, until Sophies new best friend Emily , is also raped by him. Owen tells Annabel she must confess. Annabel then gets the courage to tell since Emily did. The end of the book closes with Will being charged with rape and Annabel finally built up the courge to tell.
I think the audience for this book is young teen girls because Sarah Dessen shows how every girl goes through trouble. She also shows that you shouldn't be afraid to tell if something like this happened to you.
The authors writing style is easy to understand. She uses flashbacks alot throughout the whole book.
" From the moment the three of us walked into the pary that night, I could feel people looking at Emily." Right before this she was talking about modeling then she flashes back to the night she was raped.
1." As long as i had something to listen to, I could blur the things I didn't want to think about, if not block them out completely." I like this because I think it shows how Annabel was. She was always trying to just block things out of her mind instead of dealing with them..
2. " Everytime i looked at it, I was reminded how much I liked this new life, without a secret hanging over me." I liked this because she finally let out what she was holding in and she felt very realived that she did this.
3. " It sounded painful. But i didn't say anything." This is when Annabel's Mother is telling her about all the modeling she has to do that weekend. Even though Annabel was not up to it she didn't tell her because she didnt wanna break her mothers heart.
I couldn't exactly relate to what happened to Annabel. But i could relate that sometimes you don't want to tell someone the truth because you are afraid it might hurt them. I think that everyone goes through this and finally gets the courage to come out and say it. This book really reminded me of Speak. I liked how she waited til the end to tell you what happened. It really made you want to keep reading.
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This book seems like a lot of teenage girls could relate, not in the sense of being raped but in the sense of not sharing her feelings or such a serious happening. A lot of Sarah Dessen books relate to teenage girls, and have good meanings. I think i would enjoy this book because of the suspense of finding out what happens in the end.
ReplyDeleteThe book Just Listen was definately one of the best books sarah dessen has written. she is my favorite author because her books have deep meanings, conflicts, and actual problems that girls our age face. i definately agree with Shy that this book reminds me of Speak (which is also a bork worth reading). This book was a little longer but it gave Sarah Dessen the time to truly create a bond between reader and the characters.
ReplyDeleteI'm not sure if I would like this book or not. When I was reading the summary, it really interested me but the fact that Annabelle always blocks things out than instead of dealing with them, might make me dislike her character. I've found that I like reading about stronger main characters but there is still I chance I could really enjoy this book. I've read three other of Sarah Dessen's books but I disliked "That Summer." However, I really liked the other two so there is a chance that I'll like this one.
ReplyDeleteThe summary reminds me of Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson. I think I'd really enjoy this book. I don't why horrible stories always makes such a great novel, probably because most of them end with courage and strength. Anyways, I really liked this quote: " As long as i had something to listen to, I could blur the things I didn't want to think about, if not block them out completely." I can totally relate to that. When I'm going through a rough time, or when I'm upset I'll block things out. It's a way of coping with pain.
ReplyDelete-Audra Yelin
I read this for my first outside reading book and i thought it was a really good book. I liked the first passage she chose becuase it really does show how Annabel is. She wanted to block her thoughts out and not really deal with them. I also agree with how Sarah Dessen makes you want to keep reading the book and how she saves the best for last. She has to be one of my favorite authors.- Jill Frost
ReplyDeleteI feel like i would enjoy reading this book. i could relate to Annabel on how she always hold things in. I thought the book Speak was interesting. It showed the struggle with what she went through. This book seems to be the same type of style. A lot of teenage girls can relate to it.
ReplyDeleteAimee Mueller