Review: The Unwritten Rule by Elizabeth Scott
THE UNWRITTEN RULE- By: Elizabeth Scott
SUMMARY:
"The Unwritten Rule" is a fantastic read that teaches us about friendship, love, and life. The main character (and narrator) is a 17 year old high school girl named Sarah who is in love...with her best friend's boyfriend Ryan. Her best friend, Brianna, is this tall, gorgeous, long haired beauty who every guy wants, as Sarah mentions in the book. Back in eighth grade, Ryan had asked Sarah to the school dance but had to cancel at the last minute. Sarah, of course, was devastated and felt rejected. She had always been in love with Ryan but figured he didn't like her since he had cancelled. Right before freshmen year of high school started, there was an end of the summer party. Sarah hadn't seen Ryan all summer and when he walked in, she was so happy. He goes over to her, and they talk for quite some time. He touches her hand, says "Sarah.." and it seems as though they are about to kiss. Right at that moment, Brianna goes over to them and starts talking. She seems to really be interested in Ryan as they both begin to talk to each other. At that moment, Sarah explains how she knew that Brianna had him and Sarah didn't stand a chance. Soon after that, Brianna and Ryan become a couple. The problem is that whenever Brianna and Ryan would hang out, Brianna practically forced her to hang out with them, too, since she assumed Sarah didn't have anything else to do. Sarah, being the best friend that she could be, continued hanging out with the two of them even though her feelings for Ryan were only getting deeper and stronger. All along though, it is clear that Ryan is having feelings for Sarah, too. Right from the beginning, Brianna and Ryan seem like such an odd couple. You have Brianna, an arrogant, somewhat stuck up girl who is really into herself and then there is Ryan, who is this charismatic, considerate, easygoing guy that is the opposite of superficial. While reading this book, it doesn't make much sense why Brianna and Ryan are together. Ryan and Sarah are clearly falling for each other throughout the book yet he stays with Brianna. Brianna does start to feel that Ryan is being distant but doesn't understand why, so she asks Sarah to talk with him. Ryan and Sarah just get closer and closer and end up kissing...twice. Sarah is so torn up about this and wants to tell Brianna the truth but keeps failing to do so. Sarah finds out that Brianna ended up kissing one of their classmates Greg who has a crush on Brianna yet hadn't told Ryan. Brianna's home life is not the greatest either as her mom constantly puts her down and criticizes just about everything about her. Her dad wants nothing to do with her and refuses to see her. (The parents are divorced). Sarah's parents, on the other hand, are wonderful and loving to both Sarah and Brianna. I think this is partly why Sarah finds it so difficult to tell Brianna the truth. Brianna finds more of a home at Sarah's house, so it is a tough situation. In the end, (***SPOILER ALERT) Brianna dumps Ryan, which he was about to do anyway in order to be with Sarah, and Ryan and Sarah end up hanging out and cuddling all night at Sarah's house. (Her parents are out of town). They seem so happy and in love and even tell one another that they love each other. They fall asleep and wake up the next morning to the sound of the door opening...it's Brianna. She sees them together in Sarah's bed, gets extremely upset, and storms out. Sarah tries apologizing numerous times and finally gives up months later as she feels it wasn't meant to be. Even though they were best friends, they were also very different from each other and in a weird way, it did work out for the best. Sarah and Ryan were happy and in love, even though Sarah had lost her best friend.
CONNECTION TO YA LIT CRITERIA:
~YA authors write from the viewpoint of young people- This story is told through the eyes of 17 year old Sarah.
~YA lit gets rid of parents so the young person is free to take credit for his/her own accomplishments- Throughout the story, we do get glimpses into the parents' lives of both Sarah and Brianna; however, the critical and climactic parts in the novel are primarily involving the younger people.
~YA lit is fast paced- This book has probably been the quickest read for me! I thoroughly enjoyed it and wanted to keep reading to see how it would end. What made this book especially fast paced was how the author, Elizabeth Scott, ended each and every chapter with a cliffhanger! While they were not all major, every chapter ended right when something was about to happen. This made the book incredibly enjoyable and intense!
~YA lit includes a variety of genres and subjects- This book covers many different topics: friendship, love, betrayal, family/friend hardships, fitting in, trying to do the right thing, etc.
~YA books are optimistic w/ characters making worthy accomplishments- While in the end, Sarah does end up losing her best friend, she did achieve what she wanted most which was Ryan. They were both so in love with each other which is definitely a worthy accomplishment.
~Successful YA novels deal w/ emotions that are important to young adults- This book is definitely relatable with young adults' emotions. It deals with falling in love, facing emotional hardships with family/friends, friend betrayal, etc.
LINK FOR FURTHER INFORMATION:
http://www.elizabethwrites.com/theunwrittenrule.php --> This link will take you to the author's own website. It gives a summary, reviews, and actual comments about the story from the author herself!
PERSONAL RESPONSE:
This book was excellent! I really liked it and felt it was an absolute page turner. From the summary above, it may seem to many that Sarah sounds like some backstabbing boyfriend stealer but as you are reading, the author makes you want to root for Sarah. I felt Brianna's character to be very unlikable, and I felt bad for Sarah. I wanted her to come out on top in the end which she did thankfully. While I personally have not gone through this type of experience, I still found it interesting and exciting to read. Sarah is such a likable character, and Scott did an amazing job portraying her as someone who only wanted to do what was best for everyone else until she finally did something for herself. I think this book would be wonderful to read for high school aged children. I do feel it would appeal more to girls---in movie terms, it is a bit of a "chick flick." In regards to incorporating this into a classroom lesson, I definitely would not. It is solely for entertainment purposes. I do not feel there is enough to go on with the storyline/life lessons/significant importance. I think it is just a fun read that shows true love conquers all---well, at least in this case! :)
SUMMARY:
"The Unwritten Rule" is a fantastic read that teaches us about friendship, love, and life. The main character (and narrator) is a 17 year old high school girl named Sarah who is in love...with her best friend's boyfriend Ryan. Her best friend, Brianna, is this tall, gorgeous, long haired beauty who every guy wants, as Sarah mentions in the book. Back in eighth grade, Ryan had asked Sarah to the school dance but had to cancel at the last minute. Sarah, of course, was devastated and felt rejected. She had always been in love with Ryan but figured he didn't like her since he had cancelled. Right before freshmen year of high school started, there was an end of the summer party. Sarah hadn't seen Ryan all summer and when he walked in, she was so happy. He goes over to her, and they talk for quite some time. He touches her hand, says "Sarah.." and it seems as though they are about to kiss. Right at that moment, Brianna goes over to them and starts talking. She seems to really be interested in Ryan as they both begin to talk to each other. At that moment, Sarah explains how she knew that Brianna had him and Sarah didn't stand a chance. Soon after that, Brianna and Ryan become a couple. The problem is that whenever Brianna and Ryan would hang out, Brianna practically forced her to hang out with them, too, since she assumed Sarah didn't have anything else to do. Sarah, being the best friend that she could be, continued hanging out with the two of them even though her feelings for Ryan were only getting deeper and stronger. All along though, it is clear that Ryan is having feelings for Sarah, too. Right from the beginning, Brianna and Ryan seem like such an odd couple. You have Brianna, an arrogant, somewhat stuck up girl who is really into herself and then there is Ryan, who is this charismatic, considerate, easygoing guy that is the opposite of superficial. While reading this book, it doesn't make much sense why Brianna and Ryan are together. Ryan and Sarah are clearly falling for each other throughout the book yet he stays with Brianna. Brianna does start to feel that Ryan is being distant but doesn't understand why, so she asks Sarah to talk with him. Ryan and Sarah just get closer and closer and end up kissing...twice. Sarah is so torn up about this and wants to tell Brianna the truth but keeps failing to do so. Sarah finds out that Brianna ended up kissing one of their classmates Greg who has a crush on Brianna yet hadn't told Ryan. Brianna's home life is not the greatest either as her mom constantly puts her down and criticizes just about everything about her. Her dad wants nothing to do with her and refuses to see her. (The parents are divorced). Sarah's parents, on the other hand, are wonderful and loving to both Sarah and Brianna. I think this is partly why Sarah finds it so difficult to tell Brianna the truth. Brianna finds more of a home at Sarah's house, so it is a tough situation. In the end, (***SPOILER ALERT) Brianna dumps Ryan, which he was about to do anyway in order to be with Sarah, and Ryan and Sarah end up hanging out and cuddling all night at Sarah's house. (Her parents are out of town). They seem so happy and in love and even tell one another that they love each other. They fall asleep and wake up the next morning to the sound of the door opening...it's Brianna. She sees them together in Sarah's bed, gets extremely upset, and storms out. Sarah tries apologizing numerous times and finally gives up months later as she feels it wasn't meant to be. Even though they were best friends, they were also very different from each other and in a weird way, it did work out for the best. Sarah and Ryan were happy and in love, even though Sarah had lost her best friend.
CONNECTION TO YA LIT CRITERIA:
~YA authors write from the viewpoint of young people- This story is told through the eyes of 17 year old Sarah.
~YA lit gets rid of parents so the young person is free to take credit for his/her own accomplishments- Throughout the story, we do get glimpses into the parents' lives of both Sarah and Brianna; however, the critical and climactic parts in the novel are primarily involving the younger people.
~YA lit is fast paced- This book has probably been the quickest read for me! I thoroughly enjoyed it and wanted to keep reading to see how it would end. What made this book especially fast paced was how the author, Elizabeth Scott, ended each and every chapter with a cliffhanger! While they were not all major, every chapter ended right when something was about to happen. This made the book incredibly enjoyable and intense!
~YA lit includes a variety of genres and subjects- This book covers many different topics: friendship, love, betrayal, family/friend hardships, fitting in, trying to do the right thing, etc.
~YA books are optimistic w/ characters making worthy accomplishments- While in the end, Sarah does end up losing her best friend, she did achieve what she wanted most which was Ryan. They were both so in love with each other which is definitely a worthy accomplishment.
~Successful YA novels deal w/ emotions that are important to young adults- This book is definitely relatable with young adults' emotions. It deals with falling in love, facing emotional hardships with family/friends, friend betrayal, etc.
LINK FOR FURTHER INFORMATION:
http://www.elizabethwrites.com/theunwrittenrule.php --> This link will take you to the author's own website. It gives a summary, reviews, and actual comments about the story from the author herself!
PERSONAL RESPONSE:
This book was excellent! I really liked it and felt it was an absolute page turner. From the summary above, it may seem to many that Sarah sounds like some backstabbing boyfriend stealer but as you are reading, the author makes you want to root for Sarah. I felt Brianna's character to be very unlikable, and I felt bad for Sarah. I wanted her to come out on top in the end which she did thankfully. While I personally have not gone through this type of experience, I still found it interesting and exciting to read. Sarah is such a likable character, and Scott did an amazing job portraying her as someone who only wanted to do what was best for everyone else until she finally did something for herself. I think this book would be wonderful to read for high school aged children. I do feel it would appeal more to girls---in movie terms, it is a bit of a "chick flick." In regards to incorporating this into a classroom lesson, I definitely would not. It is solely for entertainment purposes. I do not feel there is enough to go on with the storyline/life lessons/significant importance. I think it is just a fun read that shows true love conquers all---well, at least in this case! :)
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Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Kelly Farrow on
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Thanks for the review. This really reminds me of a nonfiction book I'm reading now, The Triple Bind by Hinshaw. It sounds like Sarah is really getting tangled up in the Triple Bind, especially the part about how girls are expected to care about others' feelings always at the expense of their own and to hide their own feelings if someone else's might get hurt in the process. I think the more girls are aware of these challenges they face, the more they can process their own reactions to things. So this sounds like a good book to open up those kinds of discussions w/ them.
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