Recent Read: Saint Anything

Saint Anything by Sarah Dessen 

Sydney has always lived a bit in the shadow of her charismatic older brother, Peyton. First she was overshadowed by his legend, later by his infamy. In and out of rehabs, court, and prison, Peyton became the central focus of Sydney’s family, culminating in a drunk driving accident in which a sixteen-year-old was paralyzed. Peyton is now in prison for the long term.

Sydney, in an attempt at a fresh start, transfers to the public high school where she meets Layla Chatham. Layla embraces Sydney taking her into her own group of friends and family, a place where Sydney can be herself and feel safe.

 Now, this is Sarah Dessen, so you may be wondering, where’s the boy? The answer is Layla has gentle older brother (I don’t think I’m really spoiling anything here). But one of the striking things about this novel is that I wouldn't categorize it as romance. It’s more contemporary realistic, with a romance in it. The focus of this novel is Sydney herself, her family, her friends and friendships. 

There’s real depth here. Sydney’s family is trying to cope with the imprisonment of their only son—and not handling it too well. Sydney is a bit invisible to them. She feels anger and resentment toward her brother. And in the absence of outward signs of her family’s guilt over the accident, Sydney takes on all of the guilt and responsibility herself. Meanwhile a friend of Peyton’s has weaseled his way into the family like a parasite, comforting Sydney’s parents, while giving Sydney an inappropriate amount of attention.

The Chathams are a safe haven, a place where her voice is heard and she is seen. The question is if she can find a way to be seen and heard by her own parents, recognized as the individual that she is.

I loved it. Highly recommended.

Recent Read: To All the Boys I've Loved Before

To All the Boys I've Loved Before by Jenny Han

Each time Lara Jeans falls in love, she writes the boy a letter to say goodbye. Then she tucks it away in a hatbox, never to be sent. But then the boys start receiving their letters.

Great premise, but it wasn't really what I expected. This little description doesn’t really provide a picture of what the story actually is. Lara Jean’s older sister, Margot leaves for college in Scotland as the book begins. Before leaving she breaks up with her long-time boyfriend, Josh—a boy that Lara Jean loved (and realizes she still does). So when he gets his letter, Lara Jean makes up a boyfriend to save face. She no longer has any interest in the fake boyfriend, (Peter, who also got a letter she had written in middle school), but they decide to keep the charade going for the sake of Josh and Peter’s new ex.

So that’s the set up. And I loved it…until the end. One of the best teen romances I’ve read…until the end. When it comes to romance, YA has a lot of passion, drama, sensitivity, and physical intimacy of different kinds. Jenny Han brings something to this story that I rarely see: humor and playfulness. It was a joy to read this. I felt like I was giggling and blushing along with the protagonist. They tease each other and make each other laugh and enjoy spending time together. It’s a bunch of little things that collect over time. It was nice to read something that felt so natural and fun.

Unfortunately, it was not without its problems. The voice was the first thing I noticed. She sounded 13, but she’s 16. She wasn’t especially emotional, which I found strange.

(spoiler-ish things ahead)
Then there's the biggest problem of all: right at the end something sours things for Lara Jean and _____. And they don’t really get resolved. On the final page we see Lara Jean intending to resolve things. But we don’t really get to see them together as a happy couple. I wanted to see that! I don’t want to rely on my own imagination! The ending was focused more on the sisters than the couple. And truth be told, I was a little unsatisfied with what happens between the sisters, too. I can’t imagine letting go of the things they did to each other that quickly and did Margot ever really get what Lara Jean was going through? I dunno. I’ve never had a sister, so maybe I can’t understand. I kept trying to change the story or resolve it in my head after I finished the book. All this build up and then…blah. Not only did the book feel unsettled, it made me feel unsettled, which I did not appreciate. (Though obviously if I had this kind of reaction, she succeeded very much in getting me involved and caring about the characters.)