Summary Of The Novel 'The Way I Used To Be'

Many young adult novels deal with lighthearted topics, but “The Way I Used to Be” explores the topic of rape through the first person experience of Eden. “The Way I Used to Be” is a powerful read that holds you close to the reader emotionally. It starts off with the story of 14 year old Eden as she is raped by her older brothers best friend. The book is separated into the four years of her high school experience. Readers are able to get a glimpse of her emotional development as the story unfolds.

What makes this book such a powerful read, is the first person view from the main character. This view allows for the main character, Eden, to fully develop. This type of character development is especially important due to the traumatic event that occured. Having her thinking process available to the readers, allows for a better understanding of how the character copes. Readers are able to see how her personality and thinking process changes. This can also mean that readers have a very limited viewpoint. Seeing how she changed from a family or friend viewpoint, may have made an even bigger impact on the reader. Eden changed from being a kind-hearted, innocent girl to making careless mistakes and hurting the people around her.
The first chapter of the book gives a strong base that allows for the rest of the story to unfold. The novel starts off with the traumatic event of Eden being raped by her brother best friend. This event is so emotional and raw. Every word in this first scene is impactful and makes the event feel even more realistic. The beginning of the book gave a pathway for readers to see the real impact on Eden. She goes through so much pain and internal conflicts and the way the book was organized makes it easy to follow the