The Book That Changed My Life

My favorite book is Just Listen by Sarah Dessen.  I really love all of Sarah Dessen's books, but I especially love Just Listen.  All of Dessen's books have very different characters in very different situations.  That's one of the reasons I love her writing, and especially Just Listen.  The main characters are Annabel Green and Owen Armstrong.  Annabel is a teen model who has lots of family issues like her anorexic older sister, Whitney, and a huge secret that she's been keeping from everyone.  Owen has a reputation as the kid who gets into fights.  He had recently been sent to anger management for punching another student in the face.  These two become friends under some odd circumstances, as neither has many friends, Owen because of his anger issues and Annabel because of her huge secret that caused her best friend (and most of the school) to no longer like her.  This book speaks so strongly to me because of the bond that Owen and Annabel form, even though they are extremely different and have different views on almost every aspect of life.  Dessen's characters are so realistic that I feel as though I personally know them.  That is why I love Just Listen and enjoy rereading it (and I normally hate rereading books).