Someone Like You by Sarah Dessen
Usually it is difficult to find love stories that explain issues and aspects such as death of close ones, teen pregnancy and family trouble, yet Someone Like You, by Sarah Dessen, is a mix of romance as well as reality. In the book Someone Like You, which was first published in the year 1998, Halley and Scarlett experience a plethora of tragic events as well as somewhat satisfying situations. Someone Like You is filled with countless conflicts of love and misfortunes.
Halley and Scarlett have been friends for years, sharing secrets, clothes and even crushes. Scarlett is known as the popular flamboyant one; Halley is simply known as Scarlett’s sidekick. Their lives change drastically when Scarlett’s boyfriend Michael is killed in a freak motorcycle accident. Unfortunately, other problems follow; soon afterwards, Scarlett realizes she is pregnant and that it is Michael’s. Scarlett goes through many inadequate situations including her mother’s disbelief, school drama, work, and other boy’s ignorance. For the first time, Scarlett demonstrates to the reader that she needs Halley. Halley assists and shows Scarlett that she can trust her. Halley does her best to accomplish their goal of undergoing the responsibility, but finds herself facing her own problems. She is having trouble separating from her controlling mother; she has difficulties with Macon Faulker and their secret relationship as well as accepting the declining health of her grandmother. Although Halley experiences many interferences, she manages to look after Scarlett and guide her. Together they surpass the nine months of cravings, mood swings, and vomiting. Nothing could have prepared the teens for such unexpected occurrences. At the end, they realize it was all worth it and have cherished a beautiful as well as munificent, baby girl. All of the unfavorable events where significant because they lead to Grace Halley Thomson’s birth and taught the girls a lesson.
Following Halley and Scarlett through their rough situations forces the readers to contemplate about real life conflicts, and it demonstrates how this could eventually occur to anyone. Sarah Dessen did an exceptionally well job of making this book remarkably interesting and impossible to put down. I would recommend this book to readers that enjoy books about relationships, yet they are not afraid to experience a story being shown through actual situations. Even if reading about relationships is not something you enjoy, you should step out of your comfort zone and give it a try. In the story, Halley and Scarlett experiences remind everyone that a true friendship will never break because it is a promise that should be kept forever.