Lock and Key

Lock and Key by Sarah Dessen is a book about a girl, Ruby, who tries to raise herself on her own after her mother abandons her.  It doesn't take long for her long lost sister to swoop in and take her under her wing.  Introducing her to a life she never even imagined.  Her sister was wealthy, and sent Ruby to a private school where Ruby had to learn a new social life.  Things were very different, and she had to adjust to working hard in school and making new friends.

Lock and Key was so appealing to me, because it was a story that left you very in the dark for the beginning part and then half way through in one chapter the entire book makes sense.  Thats what I loved about it, is it kept you wondering about how and when the author, Sarah Dessen, would you bring the story full circle.  Lock and Key was a realistic story which is one of my favorite types of stories, because it's like you can almost imagine it happening to you.  It's a teenage girl, having to adjust to a new setting, and make new friends, which almost any teenager would encounter.  But the twist is that her background is so dramatic and you want to know more about it that it keeps you interested.

Teenagers would take out of Lock and Key, that life sometimes throws us unexpected turns.  You have to try to see the best in them and where they could take you rather then having a bad attitude and "hating life" until the situation goes away.  At some point we are going to find out that somethings are not going to change, and we are going to have to get used to change.  This book would not really affect an adults life but it could affect how they reflect back on their life.  Make them realize what they took for granted like having parents, a house, and a good education.  After having to support a household, this book could show them how hard Ruby worked to try and raise herself, and that there are kids out there doing that now.  Lock and Key definitely has more of an effect on teenagers then adults as far as life lessons go.

This book will not be one that is well know in 10 years.  It is not a popular book even within the Young Adult genre, and it doesn't have a big enough underlying lesson.  But it is nice for just light reading about a story that keeps you interested along they way.  I found myself a lot of the time having emotions toward the characters which never happens to me.  Thats why this book is so fond in my memory, and considered my favorite.