[.ca] How To Deal Movie Tie In (ISBN 0142501034)

What a good book!!!:
I took this book out of the public library a month ago for a bit of light reading. I had heard through some people at school that Mandy Moore was doing a movie called How to Deal, so when I saw the book I had to pick it up! I thought that the first section was better than the second section, becuase it delt more with sad teen issues rather than just divorce issues. I no sooner finished reading the novel, and then I ran out to my local "Chapers" book store, and bought 3 copies- one for me, and the other ones for two of my friends! It is a good book and I would recomend it to anybody who likes sweet sentimental books that deal with teen issues!!!

Teenagers Lives in a Nutshell:
This book deals with all the things that happen to teenagers during there high school years from the death of a friend to your parents getting divorced and your best friend getting pregnant. It is the perfect book for any teenager it makes you relize that your friends mean a lot to you and if anything were to happen to them you would be devastated for life and that the years you spend in high school will define the rest of your life one mistake can shatter your life into pieces. Anyone who has ever been in high school can relate to at least one problem that the charactors face your would have to have been home schooled if you don't because everyone has had a friend die or get pregnant or maybe a divorce happens but you learn through time how to deal with all the problems that you are faced with. I hope that everyone enjoys this book as much as I did the movie is good but the books are better as always.

How to Deal...:
Although How to Deal contains two novels about two different characters, both stories share the same themes such as family, friends, and trying to find oneself during a time of uncertainty. The first story follows Halley as she tries to support her best friend during a time of need, and deal with the new excitement (and confusion) of a first love. Most teens can relate to Halley's struggle as she feels more and more distant from her family and her constant anxiety over friends and her boyfriend, Macon. The first story is fast paced and touching, a story of about strength and the unity of friendship. The next story follows Haven, as her father (divorced from her mother) marries the weathergirl, Lorna Queen who he works with and the planning of her sister, Ashely's wedding. Haven's mind drifts to a time of a better summer, when she was closer to her sister, when her parents were together, when one of Ashley's boyfriends, Sumner, had brought the best out of all of them and made them a family. Haven is torn between all the changes taking place in her family as she tries to find where she belongs. This story moves slower than the first with more emphasis on character developement instead of action or suspense as found in the first.

How To Deal:
This book is actually two different books that are put into one volume. The first book, Someone Like You, is AMAZING and I couldn't put it down. However, the second book, That Summer, was boring and I only read it when I was trying to get out of cleaning my room. If I were you, I wouldn't waste my money and I would just buy Someone Like You. I gave this book 4 star because Someone Like You is one of the best books I've ever read, but I don't like That Summer at all. Is anyone else confused on how they made a movie out of these books?

How To Deal:
How to Deal is a book with two novels by Sarah Dessen in them which were combound to make a movie. The stories are divided in this book instead of combinded like the movie. I'll review each story seperatly Someone Like You was my favorite of the two novels, it talks about Halley and he crazy life. She used to be quiet and well behaved, but then her best friend Scarlett became pregnant and the father of the baby is killed. Halley helps Scarlett through her pregnancy while dating Macon, the mysterious and wild boy who was Michael(the baby's father)'s best friend. Soon Halley's world turns upside down with Macon's wild spirit, Scarlett's grief and baby and how she distances herself from her mother. This story is about true life and love, and how Halley deals with it. I found myself smiling through my tears in the end, and it is one of my favorite "true-life" stories of all time. That Summer: Haven is an awkward fifteen year old, who finds her world turned upside-down this summer. What with her father having an affair, her moody sister getting married to a man like a saltine cracker and her mother's saddness and obsessive gardening, Haven feels lost in the shuffle. She is angry with her crazy family, her new Bad Girl best friend and her life in general. She keeps remembering how wonderful that summer was when her sister was dating Sumner Lee, the happy and perfect boy who seemed to pull her family together. But after they broke-up, it was then that Haven's world unraveled. It sound like it would be an awesome book, but the characters were not developed well and the ending seemed unfinished. The message in the story was a good one though, about how the first boy always hurts the most. I had to give this book four stars because of the story That Summer, but this is worth owning. I think that the movie will be a little bit overdone though, when you combine Halley and Haven together for one story. That many events at one time don't often happen in real life. But two seperate films would have been great. Someone Like You is amazing and That Summer is worth reading.