Editorial Content for You Know Me Well
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Reviewer (text)
YOU KNOW ME WELL by David Levithan and Nina LaCour should be read by everyone. David Levithan is a New York Times best selling author who has written with authors such as John Green. Although Levithan has co-written many books, YOU KNOW ME WELL marks Nina LCour’s first collaborative effort.
“YOU KNOW ME WELL utilizes clever analogies and metaphors to put a smile on your face….[You] will truly feel at home with these characters.”
YOU KNOW ME WELL is successful in portraying realistic teens struggling with identity and the vast opportunities of the future. As a high school senior, I can relate to the anxiety of what to do with my life in general. Told from two points of view, this book follows protagonists Kate and Mark, who become spontaneous friends after an awkward encounter. Although they’ve never before spoken to each other at school, common struggles bring together the unlikely duo. Kate is an artist who questions who she has become and why she is friends with people who don’t understand her struggles. Mark, meanwhile, is a baseball player being overlooked by his friend, Ryan, who also happens to be his crush. Without giving away spoilers, this novel is exceptional at portraying emotions like disappointment, frustration, exuberance and anger. Characters like Violet and Lehna come alive: Violet is cool, beautiful and adventurous while Lehna is the friend you have forever who is almost like an identical twin. This novel is able to help readers find a sense of comfort in knowing that rejection, while heartbreaking, is something you can always come back from. YOU KNOW ME WELL utilizes clever analogies and metaphors to put a smile on your face. With colloquial language to make the dialogue realistic, you will truly feel at home with these characters.
Specifically, the sexuality of teens is not commonly talked about like it is in YOU KNOW ME WELL, therefore it is imperative for all young adults to read this novel. Levithan and LaCour succeed in making pride a celebratory occasion for everyone to participate in --- straight, homosexual, or otherwise.
While YOU KNOW ME WELL presents a highly relevant story, the reading level is not very advanced and is clearly for the younger set of young adult readers. The love story feels a bit cliche at times, but the impending unknown for the characters is enough to draw in any reader. The essence of the story is that the future is wide open and you are in control of your life, so do what makes you happy.
Teaser
Mark and Kate have sat next to each other for an entire year, but have never spoken. For whatever reason, their paths outside of class have never crossed. That is until Kate spots Mark miles away from home, out in the city for a wild, unexpected night. Kate is lost, having just run away from a chance to finally meet the girl she has been in love with from afar. Mark, meanwhile, is in love with his best friend Ryan, who may or may not feel the same way. When Kate and Mark meet up, little do they know how important they will become to each other -- and how, in a very short time, they will know each other better than any of the people who are supposed to know them more.
Promo
Mark and Kate have sat next to each other for an entire year, but have never spoken. For whatever reason, their paths outside of class have never crossed. That is until Kate spots Mark miles away from home, out in the city for a wild, unexpected night. Kate is lost, having just run away from a chance to finally meet the girl she has been in love with from afar. Mark, meanwhile, is in love with his best friend Ryan, who may or may not feel the same way. When Kate and Mark meet up, little do they know how important they will become to each other -- and how, in a very short time, they will know each other better than any of the people who are supposed to know them more.
About the Book
Who knows you well? Your best friend? Your boyfriend or girlfriend? A stranger you meet on a crazy night? No one, really?
Mark and Kate have sat next to each other for an entire year, but have never spoken. For whatever reason, their paths outside of class have never crossed.
That is until Kate spots Mark miles away from home, out in the city for a wild, unexpected night. Kate is lost, having just run away from a chance to finally meet the girl she has been in love with from afar. Mark, meanwhile, is in love with his best friend Ryan, who may or may not feel the same way.
When Kate and Mark meet up, little do they know how important they will become to each other -- and how, in a very short time, they will know each other better than any of the people who are supposed to know them more.
A book told in alternating points of view by Nina LaCour, the award-winning author of HOLD STILL and THE DISENCHANTMENTS, and David Levithan, the best-selling author of EVERY DAY and co-author of NICK AND NORAH'S INFINITE PLAYLIST (with Rachel Cohn) and WILL GRAYSON, WILL GRAYSON (with John Green), YOU KNOW ME WELL is a deeply honest story about navigating the joys and heartaches of first love, one truth at a time.
Audiobook available, narrated by Katie Schorr and Michael Crouch.
