Sarah Dessen

From the award-winning and New York Times bestselling author of Once and for All To find the truth you’ve got to be willing to hear it. When she’s modeling, Annabel is the picture of perfection. But her real life is far from perfect. Fortunately, she’s got Owen. He’s intense, music-obsessed, and dedicated to always telling the truth. And most of all, he’s determined to make Annabel happy. . . “This is young adult fiction at its best.” —School Library Journal Sarah Dessen is the winner of the Margaret A. Edwards Award for her contributions to YA literature, as well as the Romantic Times Career Achievement Award. Books by Sarah Dessen: That Summer Someone Like You Keeping the Moon Dreamland This Lullaby The Truth About Forever Just Listen Lock and Key Along for the Ride What Happened to Goodbye The Moon and More Saint Anything Once and for All

Just Listen

Isolated from friends who believe the worst because she has not been truthful with them, sixteen-year-old Annabel finds an ally in classmate Owen, whose honesty and passion for music help her to face and share what really happened at the end-of-the-year party that changed her life

a novel

Just listen

It took way to long to start and it was boring. It didn't make me wonder what was gonna happen next, it made me hope this book would end. I'm just saying this book isn't the best book.

Ari 😚

I did not like this book at all!

It took way to long to start and it was boring. It didn't make me wonder what was gonna happen next, it made me hope this book would end. I'm just saying this book isn't the best book.

i’m kicking myself for not reading this book sooner. I LOVED THIS SO MUCH

this book makes me feel like i’m watching an episode of an abc family show like the fosters or the secret of an american teenager with all the well-written characterizations and storylines

i wasn’t expect for discussions of serious topics such as eating disorders and depression in this book but i love the representation

i also love annabel and owen’s friends to lovers relationship! such cutiepies! i feel like they bring out the best in each other too ugh i wish we got to see more of them together. annabel deserves the world ugh i wanna give her a hug

i’m kicking myself for not reading this book sooner. I LOVED THIS SO MUCH

this book makes me feel like i’m watching an episode of an abc family show like the fosters or the secret of an american teenager with all the well-written characterizations and storylines

i wasn’t expect for discussions of serious topics such as eating disorders and depression in this book but i love the representation

i also love annabel and owen’s friends to lovers relationship! such cutiepies! i feel like they bring out the best in each other too ugh i wish we got to see more of them together. annabel deserves the world ugh i wanna give her a hug

ours by taylor swift

Riya

I really liked the way it was executed, it got me warmed up to the the characters in this book. In the beginning, romance felt good, their chemistry was sizzling but somewhere in the middle, that spark got lost for me. It was like I read just the fragments of their romance scattered in between as the book progressed, and we never got that whole thing. I don’t know I just wanted to feel more from their relationship and never did. As separate characters, Owen and Annabel were great though. Anyway, what attracted me most in this book was Annabel, her struggle to speak out, and her relationship with her family. I rooted so much for much them throughout the book, hence, the 3 star rating.

Zahra

First read: July 13, 2013

Second read: July 5, 2015

Sarah Dessen's books has always been comfort reads for me, ones that you just cannot miss on summer. I initially planned to start on her books that I haven't read yet - there are plenty of them - but changed my mind and reread Just Listen instead. Yes, it is my number one favorite out of the others, one of my favorite contemporaries of all time, even. And it was even better when I read it the second time around.

It's the usual Dessen story. Friends breakup, family issues, lost heroine, self discovery. But that's the thing about Dessen, she is able to weave it all into a beautiful story. For some people, the patterns of the story may be repetitive but I am perfectly content with it.

The characters are well developped. Each of the characters has their own demons, and they conquered it by the end of the story. Annabel with her modeling and isolation, Whitney with her eating disorder, Kirsten with her talkativeness (sometimes too over), Owen with his anger, etc.

Family is a big part of the story. Give me any book where family is important figure in the book and I'll love it in seconds. I'm glad that Annabel makes a habit out of watching documentary with his father at night, a little thing which shows their moment of bonding. Eventhough she has issues with her mother at first, she actually loves her mother very much. And let's not forget Whitney and Kirsten, Annabel's sister. I just love their moments together, drifting apart at a point and slowly making their way back to each other.

OWEN FREAKIN' ARMSTRONG.Everyone, meet my ultimate book boyfriend. He is known for his temper, quick to pick a fight. But he was in an anger management therapy and is trying his best to control his emotion. He tends to ignore everyone around him, by listening to music all the time (most, but like, a lot of the time). He offers Annabel friendship when no one else won't. He encourages Annabel to always be honest and always calls her out if she's lying. One way or another, he helps Annabel dealing wit her issues. And he's actually a romatic at heart, okay. (That playlist titled 'Annabel' huh)

Music. Owen listens to bizarre music, such as Mayan chants and a man wailing for a full 7 minutes. I loved it everytime he and Annabel discuss music and how their chemistry slowly built from there.

Friendship. The friendship between Annabel and Sophie is toxic, and it took Annabel a few years to realize it. Even from the beginning, I disagree with her choosing Sophie over Clarke. I mean, how can she not see that Sophie is only using her for fame? And I was just really happy when Annabel and Clarke patches things up in the end.

All in all, Just Listen is an unremarkable story which I will always hold dear to my heart. It is such a beautiful and heartfelt story of a girl who's trying to find herself and discover what she wants to do in life. It is also a great story of friendship and family. The characters stood out that I'll remember them probably for the rest of my life.

Janna Romano

Very realistic. This is a kind of love story that takes time which I've been really looking for.

Jeannette Ordas

This didn't grab me as much as some of Sarah's other books. In fact, it really took me a while to get into the characters and the story, but when it did pull me in during the last half of the book, I was sold.

Lauren Wightman

For some reason this book is my comfort food. While the writing is not groundbreaking, the story interests me everytime and the early 2000s is a nice setting to escape to. By the end I had received the warm hopeful hug I was looking for when I picked it up again.

Talia Dominguez 

Annabel Greene had what could be considered the perfect teenage life: cool friends, close family, good grades, and a part-time modeling career; at the beginning of summer it all came crashing down. Shaken by an attempted rape from her best friend's boyfriend, she doesn't try to fix the burnt bridges created when everyone turns against her. She dreads facing the world because she thinks no one will believe her and everyone will hate her even more. Her solid family seems fragile, too. What happened to cause the stiff silences and palpable resentments between her two older sisters? Why is no one in her loving but determinedly cheerful family talking about her middle sister's eating disorder? Annabel's devastating secret is revealed in bits and snatches, as readers see her go to amazing lengths to avoid confrontation. Caught between wanting to protect her family and her own struggles to face a devastating experience, Annabel finds comfort in an unlikely friendship with the school's most notorious loner. Owen Armstrong has his own issues with anger, but has learned to control it and helps her realize the dangers of holding in her emotions. Through Owen's obsession with music he teaches Annabel how to listen, and helps her confront her own demons, as well as creating a strong, unbreakable bond between the them. They eventually fall for each other. But as they are at a club listening to a band, Annabel leaves thinking a bout all the bad things in life. When Owen meets her after the day at the club, he gets upset when Annabel doesnt tell him why she left without telling him anything. As they dont talk for months she meets him at the studio telling him everything from the rape, Whitney's Eating disorder, and all the family problems. When Emily Shuster, Sophie and Annabels old friend, almost gets raped by Will cash too, she tells the police and school. When Will gets called to court and they ask for people to testify if they also have been raped or have more information, Annabel doesnt want to go in front of all those people and say her story. But as Owen wants to help her he finally convinces her to go to court and finally tell everybody about that day when Will raped her too. After that tetimony Annabel quits modeling, her sisters are bonding again, and her life is better. Also Clarke and Rolly finally are together. Owen and Annabel also become a couple and live a happy life.

Lauren Hendrix

i really liked this book. this was my first sarah dessen book. it got me into her books. it is very realistic (like all her books).

absolutely loved it. it was real and had certain parts that really stuck with me

Katharine Butler 

This book is super important, it has deep topics that people dont always want to talk about and I feel like they were portrayed very well. I would love to see this become a movie so it might reach more young girls and adults alike

Addy A

This novel is one that I know a lot of people are familiar with, if only because Sarah Dessen is the undeniable Queen of contemporary young-adult literature and this book has notoriety for being one of her best works.

I can say without a doubt, that having read some of her novels, it does stand up as one of her strongest efforts. There is a level of intricacy in the way her characters are set up here. Our main character is Annabel Greene, and we not only learn about Annabel through her POV but through the reactions of characters around her. Dessen explores Annabel’s relationships and perceptions of her family members with unflinching honesty and manages to illuminate Annabel’s character further by fleshing out the people closest to her.

One of the main struggles for Annabel’s character - in a turn that is quite reminiscent of Laurie Halse Anderson’s Speak - is the obstacle of communication. Annabel is keeping a dark secret that she is keeping close to her chest and it is ruining her in ways she isn’t even aware of. This miscommunication also affects her relationships with other characters, such as her brazen love interest Owen Armstrong.

The romance here is organic, which is a breath of fresh air in comparison to how forced romance can often be in the young-adult genre. Owen and Annabel are pushed into each other’s orbits unceremoniously but it feels more like a necessary turn of fate rather than an author’s set-up. Their relationship has its believable ups and downs, but never so much that their romance is in doubt. While overarching love isn’t the name of the game for these two, their relationship is bracingly real and the interaction between the two gives the novel a buoyancy that the darker themes of the novel call for. 

Dessen’s writing itself never feels like encumbered narration but like an experience in itself. She paints the picture well without bringing attention to her words - there is a story being told and an experience being crafted, and she makes it all too easy to just let yourself experience Annabel’s world.

Somya Verma

Just listen by Sarah Dessen is wonderful because of the message provided. Throughout the book, Annabel Greene struggles with friends and family but when she meets Owen, her world changes. She finds the courage to tell her mother that modeling isn't for her and at last she speaks the truth without worrying if it will hurt someone.

Anna Campbell

** spoiler alert **
           What I thought would be an easy fluff book to finish off my year ended up being a very interesting book about sisters, eating disorders and sexual assault. There was lots of character development, retribution, and closure. I’m so glad I read this book. Dessen never disappoints.

Ashley Harris 

Great YA fiction story! It's rare that a YA book doesn't focus primarily on the "will they, won't they" of the lead male and female characters. While there is an undercurrent of teenage romance, the primary focus of the book lies in the lead female's emotional turmoil. We follow along as she deals with issues of family, friends, and her own sexual abuse. I think we can all relate to the feelings of disconnect that she feels in various points of the story. The supporting cast is also amazingly wonderful. My only critique is the lack of closure with Sophie. The first few chapters of the book focused almost completely on the falling out between Annabel and Sophie. Yet, by the end of the book, Sophie has been reduced to a background character with no relevance to the story. Overall though, a great story worth the 370+ page read.

Alanie Rhodes

This book shows that you shouldn't judge anyone by what they look like.

anderson elizabeth

Yet another fan favorite Sarah Dessen book of mine. The only thing stopping me from clicking complete order on the cart of the rest of the Sarah Dessen books that I don’t already own is my dwindling bank account. Once that first paycheck comes in I’m back and boolin bb.

Okay, so to paint a picture we’ve got Annabel Greene who is a soft spoken model and the youngest of three sisters. Then we’ve got the elusive Owen Armstrong who Annabel discovers is ALWAYS honest. A fun fact: Owen has a ring on each of his middle fingers and my jr high self took that as inspiration so I too have had a band ring on my middle finger since I was 14 and have been on the hunt for a second one. 

I enjoy this book every single time I go back to it. I love the characters and the way that while Owen encourages Annabel to come out of her shell and be more direct/honest, ultimately it’s on her own terms and when she’s ready to. ALSO !!! I forget that Sarah Dessen always has easter eggs and includes characters from her other books and when I tell you I SCREAMED when [redacted] x4 were in the book.

Georgia Carr

I've read this book so many times, it really should be unhealthy. One of my absolute favorites, that's for sure.

Vanessa Rae

I read it in middle school but I read it again tonight.

Jeni Enjaian

I did not dislike this book. At many points I really enjoyed the book. Dressen, however, stuffs this book full of all sorts of emotional overload. Every time Annabel attempts to move forward in the narrative, Dressen stuffs a chapter or two with flashbacks to some other emotional turmoil from her mother's depression after the death of her own mother to Whitney's eating disorder to so much more. While at times Dressen deals with these life things or has Annabel deal with these life things in realistic ways that make me want to scream at those in her life to wake up and pay attention, the ending of the narrative wraps things up with a pretty, happy, completely unrealistic bow. Up until that point, I felt inclined to give this book four stars. After? Nope.

I think this book makes an interesting read but not the best.

Anastaciya

Ahh... I'm gonna read all Sarah Dessen's books. I like this type of books, they just comfort me somehow...

Michelle Boyea

I love Sarah Dessen's writing. She writes about issues that can affect teens every day. But she writes them in a way that brings the readers in to her story and helps them relate to the characters. 

This book talks about a very hard issue that is prevalent in society. Many rapists get away with the act because the victims are too scared to speak up. This book shows how much it can help to speak up about the act. 

These characters are relatable and are easy to understand. They show how important it is to have family and friends by your side and how no one should have to go through it alone.

Rose

So I've read this book a few times already. This is a comfort book for me and one of my favorites. It brings this in perspective for me. A lot of things this book has taught me and made me realize. This I try not to realize myself.

Just Listen

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