Someone Like You

SOMEONE LIKE YOU opens on the main character Halley at "Sisterhood Camp," where she's supposed to be learning self-esteem and in turn, getting along better with her parents (read, her mom). Halley's mom is a psychologist, and prior to the start of the book the two were model parent-child relationship close. But over the summer, Halley and her best friend Scarlett have started branching out more and as a result, she's done the whole withdrawal from the parents thing. In the first chapter we learn Scarlett's love interest Michael Sherwood has been killed in a motorcycle accident and then just a few chapters later we learn Scarlett's pregnant. Sort of an interesting dilemma. Scarlett's mother encourages her to have an abortion, but when Scarlett refuses, her mom decides she'll put the baby up for adoption. Scarlett is also opposed to that. Now all of that is just the backdrop to what happens to Halley, our main character. The book follows her first love with Macon, who was also Michael's best friend. Both guys were pretty fast and loose with the ladies, and Dessen cleverly works that side of Macon into the story. The reader sees everything through Halley's eyes, so he starts out as this grief-stricken, but adventurous cute boy who often doesn't make it to school or encourages her to cut class or who drives to her house in the middle of the night. And while Halley thinks it's all romantic, the reader also begins understanding Scarlett's warnings and the cautionary tales from another girl who isn't exactly Halley's friend. The story culminates with Halley having to make a choice about who she really wants to be and how far she's going to follow Macon. Hence the title. You know me, I always seem to give Dessen's books A++s, but in this case I especially like how few if any of the characters in Someone Like You do what you'd expect. I like how Dessen works in Michael's official, model girlfriend's attitude of not really caring so much about families or doing the right thing and then contrasts it to Scarlett's choice and the subsequent fallout in public opinion. Even Macon's more than just a two-dimensional bad boy. So I highly recommend this book. Heads up to moms, the book does contain some language and scenes of alcohol and drug use, but these scenes are handled in an accurate way. I remember having the distinct thought that my daughters should read this book when they're in high school.

Halley Cooke has lived a pretty normal life. She's a good girl who pretty much does as she's told. She's always been known as Scarlett Thomas's best friend. Scarlett, in contrast to Halley, is an outspoken leader. She's always taken care of Halley. But everything changes when Scarlett's boyfriend Michael dies in a tragic motorcycle accident...and Scarlett learns she's carrying Michael's baby. For the first time Scarlett needs Halley, and things get even more complicated for Halley when bad-boy Macon Faulkner starts paying special attention to her. I loved the sisterly dynamic between Scarlett and Halley. Halley always sticks by Scarlett. Halley also makes some comments throughout the novel that I found to be very insightful, and they could relate to my own life (I'm a teen, though not pregnant!). I also liked that Halley finally stood up to her controlling mother, and in the end they rebuild their relationship. I read through some reviews on here, and many people dislike Halley as the narrator. While I think the story could've been told nicely from Scarlett's perspective, I didn't have many problems with Halley. I think Sarah Dessen made her naive for a reason, to show readers that sometimes people aren't really who you think they are. Halley matures a lot because of her fling with Macon, and she learns from her mistakes. I think all teen girls go through something similar to what Halley experiences. They meet a boy who seems like Prince Charming, and they imagine he has all these wonderful qualities that aren't there. In the end, they end up feeling hurt and betrayed, like the boy suddenly changed, when he never had all those great traits to begin with. This book really opened my eyes, and I definitely recommend it.

One of my favorite things about Sarah Dessen is how realistic she can be when it comes to how it felt to be a teenager. It's something that I think we tend to forget as adults, but reading one of her books really brings me back to how it all was. In fact, I would say that any parent to a teenage girl would be wise to pick up some Dessen as a method to better understanding their daughter. Although Scarlett's pregnancy is certainly an important part of this book, the story is shown from Halley's perspective. This gives a great insight into what it's like for a teenager going through a lot of different things - high school is hard enough when everything is as normal as possible, let alone dealing with your best friend being pregnant, and having your first relationship with a bad boy. What really struck me was that in the scheme of things, Halley could be considered the "good" one out of her and Scarlett, yet Halley's mom treats her like she's the one who has ended up pregnant. Granted, I wouldn't love the idea of my daughter breaking curfew and hanging out with a boy I didn't know, but Dessen does a great job of reminding you that...this is what being a teenager is like. Regardless of how good or bad my boyfriends were in high school, I didn't want to introduce them to my parents because it would be like giving up some independence. And honestly, breaking curfew and cutting classes is the least of the bad things a kid can be doing! I had also forgotten what life was like before cell phones - this book was written in 1998 and we so didn't have phones like the kids do now. It made for an interesting dynamic that just doesn't happen anymore, with parents having more control over when the kids can use the phone, yet less of an idea about where your kids are at when they aren't home. I loved this little reminder of what things were like back when I was in high school. This is definitely considered young adult fiction, but I loved it nonetheless. There's a lot of YA stuff out there that I read and just can't get into, but Sarah Dessen is never one of them. I feel like her books always tell a story I can identify with, even though I haven't been a teenager for quite some time. And for the record, I totally do not miss high school.

I absolutely adored this book. It wasn't what I expected but I really enjoyed every word and every page. I didn't want it to end. So far every book I read of Sarah Dessen, I have loved. She is a talented author able to make any kind of story and do it well. This is one of my favorites from her.

Assim como todos os livros da Sarah Dessen, é ótimo. Mesmo as protagonistas sendo jovens (estão no ensino médio), é uma boa leitura para adultos e é difícil parar de ler.

honestly im a sucker for books about friendshio. you need to write more of them! someone like you is a great book that explores the friendship of two best friends, something ive never had the pleasure of experiencing in real life. anyway great job on the book, defo hope u make more like it

Not a bad read recommend this book for teenagers there is a moral to the story that young girls could learn from.

An eye opening book that I wished would never end or become reality! The saying is right "read her once and fall in love"