Thursday 11 April 2013

Just Listen



I love Sarah Dessen. I love her in the way that I stay up all night reading her novels, then proceeding to have intense conversations about them with the only person who will listen to me (my little sister), analyze her characters, and feel like a goddamn enlightened person.

Just Listen is one of the heartbreaking, important books everyone should read. Annabel was one of those girls who “had everything” but after an incident with her best friend’s boyfriend, she’s left destroyed. Nobody sits with her for lunch, her sister is anorexic, she can’t vocalize her feelings, she’s got issues with her mom, she’s falling for the school bad boy, etc. etc. Now I know these sound like extremely ~deep~ problems but trust me, they are! Sarah Dessen handles every feeling with the utmost sensitivity so it’s really refreshing to read. What really made me cry was the way she handled the psychology of a rape victim. I’m a bit over sensitive, but Just Listen can make anyone cry. It’s sad and hopeful and… well, everything at the same time. What I also really like about Sarah Dessen is that her novels are all one big coming-of-age story. This means that her characters don’t have to deal with one or two problems but several of them. And resolving them doesn’t just take a page or two but several hundred pages along with a couple of years of the characters’ lives.  Your heart will beak for Annabel. She’s strong but vulnerable, caught in a tough place, still discovering who she is. You’ll love Owen because he’s not only the best kind of guy there is, but also the nicest kind, even if he comes across as brusque. All of the characters in the novel are excellently fleshed out (except maybe Sophie, Annabel’s ex best friend). The dynamic between Annabel and her sister(s) are interesting and well thought out and that just makes the whole novel all the more fulfilling. And the whole way music is brought into the novel (it is called “Just Listen”, y’know?) makes you want to start your own radio show and listen to Celtic chants. I LOVE YOU SARAH DESSEN.

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