The Way I Used to Be

A New York Times bestseller.

 

In the tradition of Speak, this extraordinary debut novel "is a poignant book that realistically looks at the lasting effects of trauma on love, relationships, and life" (School Library Journal, starred review).

 

Eden was always good at being good. Starting high school didn't change who she was. But the night her brother's best friend rapes her, Eden's world capsizes.

 

What was once simple, is now complex. What Eden once loved--who she once loved--she now hates. What she thought she knew to be true, is now lie. Nothing makes sense anymore, and she knows she's supposed to tell someone what happened but she can't. So she buries it instead. And she buries the way she used to be.

 

Told in four parts--freshman, sophomore, junior, and senior year--this provocative debut reveals the deep cuts of trauma. But it also demonstrates one young woman's strength as she navigates the disappointment and unbearable pains of adolescence, of first love and first heartbreak, of friendships broken and rebuilt, all while learning to embrace the power of survival she never knew she had hidden within her heart.

Author: Amber Smith
Publisher: Margaret K. McElderry Books
Published: 03/07/2017
Pages: 384
Binding Type: Paperback
Weight: 0.75lbs
Size: 8.20h x 5.40w x 1.20d
ISBN: 9781481449366

Accelerated Reader:
Reading Level: 4.4
Point Value: 13
Interest Level: Upper Grade
Quiz #/Name: 180846 / Way I Used to Be

About the Author
Smith, Amber: - Amber Smith is the New York Times bestselling author of the young adult novels The Way I Used to Be and The Last to Let Go. An advocate for increased awareness of gendered violence, as well as LGBTQ equality, she writes in the hope that her books can help to foster change and spark dialogue surrounding these issues. She grew up in Buffalo, New York, and now lives in Charlotte, North Carolina, with her partner and their ever-growing family of rescued dogs and cats.