The Way I Used to Be

A New York Times bestseller!

In the tradition of Speak, this extraordinary debut novel shares the unforgettable story of a young woman as she struggles to find strength in the aftermath of an assault.

Eden was always good at being good. Starting high school didn€t change who she was. But the night her brother€s best friend rapes her, Eden€s world capsizes.

What was once simple, is now complex. What Eden once loved€"who she once loved€"she now hates. What she thought she knew to be true, is now lies. Nothing makes sense anymore, and she knows she€s supposed to tell someone what happened but she can€t. So she buries it instead. And she buries the way she used to be.

Told in four parts€"freshman, sophomore, junior, and senior year€"this provocative debut reveals the deep cuts of trauma. But it also demonstrates one young woman€s strength as she navigates the disappointment and unbearable pains of adolescence, of first love and first heartbreak, of friendships broken and rebuilt, and while learning to embrace a power of survival she never knew she had hidden within her heart.