My Never Ending List

He was her Romeo. He heard her whistle from her upstairs window as he walked down the block, stopping he climbed upon her porch roof and made her visible again. Her parents shouting from below were drowned out as Random Boy invited her out into the night. Welcoming the attention, someone finally saw her again. His crowd was not what she was used to, for she was not used to any crowd, no friends were her surroundings. Random Boy stared at her; he just soaked her all in. Its funny how not much is spoken; their bodies do all their talking or it’s just implied. What is spoken is flirty as most relationships are at the beginning but as time flows, their language changes. Their tongues become sharp, their words direct and accusing and their love takes on a different meaning. This novel is written in verse, these two teens write down their story for their stories are alike in many ways. They both write poetry, their notebooks are a living testimony of the lives that they are living. Random Boy, his life at home, is far from perfect. He is his mother’s protector; his father’s rage gets out of control and Random Boy steps in. The strength and control that Random Boy has, my heart just breaks. Forgotten Girl, life at home revolves around her parent’s drama and where does that leave her? As these two teens find each other, what is it that they are really looking for and will they find amongst themselves?

I enjoyed the true honesty in the story; the abuse, the changes of the characters as they dealt with this new relationship, and their families which play a big role in the teen’s lives.  Random Boy’s belief about girls causes some friction with Forgotten Girl and I enjoyed the tension that it brought to the relationship. I thought perhaps it could have helped their relationship had she done something different yet she choose to fight back. Her fighting back said something about her personality, and it altered their relationship. I thought the book did a great job showing how abuse can control a relationship and change the individuals involved.