This book review is long overdue. I still remember the first time I picked up this book from the library. I think it was the summer vacation of ninth or tenth grade, I was looking for a way to pass the time and my gaze fell upon the well-worn copy of this book, just sitting there on a shelf. The only reason I picked it up — I liked the title! I never knew it would make such a huge impact on me when I read it, but it most definitely did. Over time, I’ve went back and read this book many more times, and every time, it has managed to capture my heart.
Just Listen is basically a teenage romance on the first look but honestly, it’s so much more. The protagonist is a girl named Annabel Greene, who is struggling with an inner demon, but the reader is not privy to it at first. She’s just had her summer vacation and for some reason she’s terrified of going back to school.
Annabel looks like a girl who has it all — she’s a model, is popular in school, has a wonderful family consisting of her mom, dad and two older sisters and lives in this really rich house made of glass. But then as we begin reading, we get to know that not everything is as it appears. She hates modelling, something happened during the vacation that results in a fight between her and her best friend Sophie, and she has isolated herself from everyone.
And of course, the perfect glass house conceals so much of her family’s secrets — like the fact that she’s hiding what happened during the vacation and lying to her family, or that her sister is fighting an eating disorder, or that her older sisters are estranged and not speaking… and all the time, this whisper that Annabel hears — “Shh Annabel, it’s just me.”
So much is hidden, and we get caught up in finding out what those secrets are. Along comes Owen Armstrong, certified bad boy of the school — the embodiment of tall, dark and handsome. Annabel knows she should probably stay away, but with everyone looking at her with judgemental eyes, Owen is the only one she has to talk to. And that is the start of a strange friendship. Annabel finds that Owen is not who he appears to be — rumors say he’s been in fights, has ended up in jail and so forth — but Owen is refreshingly honest. He says he never lies, which Annabel scoffs at, but then she realizes that yes, he is — always! That makes it harder for her to lie to him and pretend everything is okay. Owen and Annabel bond over music, and a mutual need for having someone you can be truthful with.
Slowly she starts remembering what happened during the summer. What happened to make her a bitch in front of her best friend and everyone at school — when actually she’s just a victim. Everyone thinks she tried to sleep with Sophie’s boyfriend when really it was him that tried to force himself on her. Scared, lonely and no one to believe her, she takes the blame for it. She is still scared of the dark, hears his voice whispering to her at night and still cannot make up the courage to talk to anyone about what happened — not even her supportive mom.
The only thing that keeps her going is Owen, and his music. She finds solace is having one person who she can be honest with, even when she’s hiding from herself. That’s when she finds out that the same thing happened to her friend Emily. But Emily is stronger than her and fights back — has him arrested. She faces up to what happened to her, figures out a way to talk to her family and Owen, and finally goes to court.
Entwined in her story is the story of her two sisters, poles apart but still finding it in themselves to care for each other and her family — which while imperfect- is perfect in every which way that counts. The author focuses on issues like rape, victim blaming but at the same time, gives us a peek onto other relevant issues too — like having anorexia, or feeling like you’re not beautiful enough, anger issues and even depression. We might feel like this book would be depressing, but surprisingly, Dessen manages to pull us into the story and just twines all these story threads so perfectly that when we come out of the book at the end, we feel refreshed and empowered.
Many times, we’ve heard stories of women speaking up about sexual harassment, but there’s not a lot that points to the struggle beneath — of feeling like it’s the victim’s fault, or the feeling of being scared even in daylight, of not having enough courage to speak up. This book looks into the dilemma that every victim must surely go through, but at the same time, it also imparts courage to us. Like the author says in the book — the best way out is always through. This book gives us the confidence to fight any situation, to face up to anything and never ever doubt in the ability of truth to come to light.
It’s not a book about a teenage girl finding love. It is about a girl who has been battered and bruised, confused about why something heinous like rape happened to her, scared if someone would actually believe her words. It’s about a girl who finds courage is the most terrifying situation and who fights back. In the end, it’s about a girl who finds herself.
So, this one is for all of you who have read a particular book and just felt like it shook the very foundations of your life, and for every one of you who wants to read a good book. I suggest you start with this one.
This Reader Says 