The Way I Used To Be(367 Pages)

This is a novel about a freshman girl who gets raped by her brother's best friend. She doesn't tell anyone about it, but rather her behavior does a complete 180. I guess that it is not unusual for girls who are raped to blame themselves or at least to think that people will think of them as sluts. Author Amber Smith has written a novel about how a sexual assault can turn an innocent, "good" girl into a victim. And eventually how the victim can become a survivor capable of facing the truth and dealing with it. This is a honestly told journey and Smith gets it right. It is not an easy read, because acting out behavior can be ugly. But it is an important read for girls and boys to be aware of the fact that there is ALWAYS someone to talk to when confronting something horrible.