bestmessever
Written on Apr 17, 2020
Who knows you well? Your best friend? Your boyfriend or girlfriend? A stranger you meet on a crazy night? No one, really?
Mark and Kate have sat next to each other for an entire year, but have never spoken. For whatever reason, their paths outside of class have never crossed.
That is until Kate spots Mark miles away from home, out in the city for a wild, unexpected night. Kate is lost, having just run away from a chance to finally meet the girl she has been in love with from afar. Mark, meanwhile, is in love with his best friend Ryan, who may or may not feel the same way.
When Kate and Mark meet up, little do they know how important they will become to each other – and how, in a very short time, they will know each other better than any of the people who are supposed to know them more.
Told in alternating points of view by Nina LaCour and David Levithan, the bestselling author of Every Day and co-author of Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist (with Rachel Cohn) and Will Grayson, Will Grayson (with John Green), You Know Me Well is a deeply honest story about navigating the joys and heartaches of first love, one truth at a time.
- ISBN10 150982393X
- ISBN13 9781509823932
- Publish Date 2 June 2016
- Publish Status Active
- Publish Country GB
- Publisher Pan Macmillan
- Imprint Macmillan Children's Books
- Format Paperback (B-Format (198x129 mm))
- Pages 256
- Language English
Reviews
catiebug
Written on Apr 3, 2017
I thought this was really good, but sometimes it felt like the thoughts didn't flow well and jumped around a lot.
Joséphine
Written on Aug 16, 2016
Initial thoughts: I liked You Know Me Well but wasn't swept away by it. Listening to it, it had co-authored David Levithan written all over it. That's not a bad thing since he writes well and pairing up with Nina LaCour resulted in a solid book. However, It felt like a permutation of books he has already written, specifically Dash & Lily's Book of Dares (which I love), only with additional people and more than one romantic plot line. There weren't any surprising plot twists for me or all too exiting highs. On the other hand, David Levithan and Nina LaCour coming together practically guaranteed an enjoyable LGBTQ-themed book. It was fun, while navigating the confusion of being in love with the best friend or the idea of a person one has yet to meet.
On a side note, I've seen a couple of reviews that mentioned how unrealistic things were due to the unlikely friendships formed as well as the romantic developments. I will say that in both high school and uni I made friends with people because one or both of us were heartbroken. There's a mutual understanding that in those moments transcended everything else. In less than a day we established understanding & trust because of the secrets that were shared. Some friendships lasted a couple of months, others are still going strong today. Based on personal experiences, I wouldn't knock relationships that develop "unrealistically" quickly.
Jo
Written on Aug 14, 2016
I picked up You Know Me Well by Nina Lacour & David Levithan expecting a light, happy read. What I got was a very quick read that left me feeling lukewarm.
Mark and Kate sit next to each other in Calculus, but have never spoke. However, a chance encounter between the two at the beginning of Pride week sees them becoming close friends. A bond is formed as they help each other through their problems. Mark is in love with his best friend, Ryan, who has no idea. Kate has loved Violet from afar for years, but when the time comes to meet her, she panics. The two find solace in each other's friendship as they struggle with their problems, but the courage to take the steps forward that they need with the support and encouragement from each other. This Pride week will be unlike any other.
You Know Me Well was heavier than I expected. I think the theme of friendship and that light coloured cover led me to believe this would be the light book I needed, but it wasn't. There was nothing too awful about the problems the characters have, it's just the frame of mind I'm in at the moment, I need books that aren't going to bring me down - and unfortunately, this book did a little. It was nice, though, to be reading an LGBTQ+ YA where the issues have nothing to do with the characters' sexuality. The problems revolve around love, relationships, change and the future. Both are dealing with fear in one way or another, but they're each able to help the other.
But You Know Me Well is a very short novel, and I think it was perhaps too quick, because I wasn't very emotionally involved with the characters. That may sound odd considering it was too heavy for me, but I just didn't feel I really got to know the characters that well, I didn't really care about them. The story moved too quickly, not giving me a chance to warm to the characters.
That saying, there was such a huge cast of characters, and all but three, I believe, are part of the LGBTQ+ community. With the mention of The Angel Project, a charity that helps LGBTQ+ youth, the story touches on the homo- and transphobia LGBTQ+ people experience, and how it can lead to them being homeless. I loved the poetry slam and the experiences the various characters shared. And I loved the huge community and celebratory feel to the book as it takes place during Pride week, all these people celebrating who they are was just wonderful.
I'll end with a beautiful quote that I think sums up the whole celebratory feel, but also the theme of the story.
'Hiding and denying and being afraid is no way to treat love. Love demands bravery. No matter the occasion, love expects us to rise[.]' (p243)
Thank you to Macmillan Children's Books for the review copy.
Kelly
Written on Jun 8, 2016
shannonmiz
Written on Jun 4, 2016
This is a weird review to write. On one hand, I loved Mark a lot. I liked Kate. I loved Mark and Kate as friends. I felt for Mark and his unrequited love for his best friend (this has been me more times than I care to admit). I liked watching Mark and Kate learn about relationships, both platonic and romantic. I enjoyed that this was a book about living while being openly gay.
So what went wrong? Well, nothing. It wasn't that it was bad at all, it just lacked... something. Something that is hard for me to put my finger on. I guess really, the whole book takes place over the course of a week, and frankly, not a ton happens. Sure, Kate and Mark became fast friends (which doesn't bother me, sometimes you just click with people!), and they dealt with some feelings and relationship stuff, and some issues with their existing friends. They went to Pride Week (which I did really like!), and Kate did some art stuff. But... that was it. And while I am generally down for character driven books, I still needed a bit more to make this a homerun for me.
And while the characters' journeys were great and quite often emotionally moving, some of the plot points seemed a bit unbelievably coincidental. To the point where I couldn't really wrap my head around it being plausible.
Bottom Line: Come for the friendships. Come for the writing. Come for the strong LGBTQIA+ representation. Expect emotion and introspection, but not a ton of action.
**Copy provided by publisher for review
Sam@WLABB
Written on May 28, 2016
I loved Mark, and I loved Kate. These two were each so special, and I instantly wanted to protect them from everything that was going on in their respective lives. I loved the friendship between Mark and Kate. Fate brought them together, when each of them were dealing with personal crises, and they looked to each other to navigate the rough waters. The unconditional support each of them gave to the other warmed my heart. They just understood the other needed and when they needed it. I really enjoyed watching that friendship develop and grow. We also watch as our MCs acknowledge some friendships changing or fading. These are those difficult moments, but it's real. Not all friendships stay the same. People grow and change, and sometimes the friendships need to grow and change too.
I have always loved how Levithan gives us a peek into the LGBTIQ community. I am straight, but I worked as a high school teacher for 12 years, and saw first hand the difficulty some teens have with coming to terms with their sexuality. In this book we had the out and proud, we had the ones with troubled home lives, we had the ones who were still in the closet. Books like this could make such a difference in someone's life, and it makes me happy to know it exists.
I loved all the feels. This is my first Nina LaCour book, but David Levithan always gives me a fun story, with a lot of humor and a lot of heart. His characters always seem very real to me, and I know, even before I open the book, that I am in store for a great experience. I was happy, I was jovial, I was hurt, I was sad, I was frustrated. I felt so many different emotions, and I loved the whole rollercoaster ride.
The heart of this story is a romance - Kate finally meeting the woman she has only known through pictures and second hand correspondence, and Mark finally being honest about his feelings for his best friend. This is where I struggled a little. My heart ached and the tears fell, when one of our MCs did not get the HEA. Honestly, it is probably my heart giving 4 verses 5 stars to this book.
Angie
Written on May 22, 2016
You Know Me Well was a cute reading about coming out, falling in love, falling out of love, and new friendships. Mark and Kate haven't spoken before, but one night they run into each other and it's basically instafriends. Mark is in love with his best friend who isn't out yet, but keeps leading him on. Kate is in love with her best friend's cousin, but is terrified to make things happen. The two pour their hearts out to each other and help the other do what they need to do in life and love.
I liked You Know Me Well, but it never fully hooked me. It's quite short, so everything happens very fast and without going too deep into any of it. I really would have liked more of Mark and Kate becoming friends and just hanging out outside of their romance woes. Their friendship almost seemed convenient in places, since they happened to have each other while everything else is falling part. It also would have been nice if their voices didn't sound identical. The POV alternates between the two of them, but if I put the book down and didn't look if I was on an even or odd chapter, I'd have a hard time knowing who was narrating.
You Know Me Well was a good read. I particularly liked Mark's journey in realizing that first love doesn't have to be the last love, and it's not always reciprocated. Yes, that's kind of depressing, but it felt real. I also liked Kate's little side-plot toward the end regarding college. She brings up some very good points and I wish more books showed this as a valid option for after high school.
Read more of my reviews at Pinkindle Reads & Reviews.