My Life in…

I was aware of the premise of this book partly from the movie How to Deal which I fell asleep halfway through, but I enjoyed how while the pregnancy was a thread throughout the whole novel, this really was Halley’s story. The progression of her relationship with Macon and his attitude toward her seemed to be ripped out of every teenage girl’s life, but didn’t feel unoriginal or boring either. The mother and daughter story worked very well; I loved the mother trying to force her teenage daughter to stay home for movie night with their friends. Scarlett’s story was heartbreaking and sweet and felt very authentic, especially in her feelings toward Michael after his death. I also enjoyed that Marion while initially seeming like the clueless single mother that is pervasive in ya lit really becomes a fully developed character. I was a little nervous about this book because I’ve enjoyed Sarah Dessen’s more recent books so much, and I wasn’t sure that her early writing would be as strong, but this definitely showed that she has been writing well for a very long time. Now I just need to get to Keeping the Moon and Dreamland.

After reading this, I will say that I totally don’t get the cover. At all. Pretty. But doesn’t really fit the book.