Review: Someone Like You by Sarah Dessen

Title: Someone Like You

Author: Sarah Dessen
Publication Year: 1998

Genre: Teen Chick Lit

Halley and Scarlett have been best friends ever since they met. Halley has always been the quiet one, Scarlett braver and more outgoing. Halley has always turned to Scarlett when things get rough, and Scarlett has always known just what to do. It's the perfect setup. But everything changes at the beginning of their junior year, Scarlett's boyfriend is killed in a motorcycle accident; then Scarlett finds out that she is carrying his baby. For the first time ever, Scarlett really needs Halley. Now Halley has to learn how to be strong for Scarlett. It won't be easy, but Halley knows that she can't let Scarlett down. Because a true friend is a promise you keep forever.

My two cents: Okay, I'm back to reviewing books and I must apologize for the lack of updates in the past two weeks. Life happens and things get hectic. I bought this after I went to my first interview for pupilage position and I was hoping to finish it by the weekend of the same week. But I ended up taking more than 1 week.

The reasons? Well, for one...I got so busy with Civil Advocacy and assignments I barely had time to read anything that's not related to them. And second of all, I have to admit that I struggled a bit through the book. The blurb sounds like something I would have liked but it really wasn't what I was expecting. I was expecting the book to be entirely about the two best friends. But, it was also about Halley's high school crush (Macon) and how she rebelled against her mum and everyone around her (Scarlett included) to be with him. I guess it's just a phase every teenager goes through and there would come a time when it would just pass, but at some points, Halley managed to annoy me so much. But just like every story with a happy ending, our girl gained her senses back before it was too late. All's well that ends well.

It is also a story about self-discovery, those moments when you discover yourself bit by bit and be surprised by it. Halley is no different. One mistake by Scarlett changed their lives forever and I have to say, the way Halley handled the changes is not at all times with maturity. With Halley, I can totally see that everyone has to make their own mistakes before they can learn from it. Scarlett is likable but I feel like the readers could do with more background story concerning her. Macon is weird, to say the least. I was hoping that the reason behind his rebellious nature would be explained by the end of the book but there really was no explanation offered. He seems to be a rebel without cause.

To say I didn't enjoy it at all would be wrong as I did enjoy the book for most part of it. It's just that my reading got interrupted so many times by things I commit my life to. I guess, I can't really complain. There are a few quotes from the book that I really liked but my favourite has to be the one on its back cover, "Life is an ugly, awful place not to have a best friend". It is true in every sense because at the end of the day, no matter what happened, Halley and Scarlett will always have each other and they will stand for each other through thick and thin and I believe, that is the message the book is trying to convey.

I don't really like the way it ended. It feels incomplete and so many questions are left unanswered. I honestly don't know how I really feel about this book. Maybe I read it at a wrong time. Perhaps one day I'll pick it up again and my opinion will change.

A few of my favourite quotes:

"There are some things in this world you rely on, like a sure bet. And when they let you down, shifting from where you've carefully placed them, it shakes your faith, right where you stand."

"...I wondered again why the right thing always seemed to be met with so much resistance, when you'd think it would be the easier path. You had to fight to be virtuous, or so I was noticing."

"Life is an ugly, awful place not to have a best friend."

My verdict: 3/5