What We Saw by Aaron Hartzler

What We Saw

by Aaron Hartzler

The story of a town torn apart by the events surrounding the rape of drunk girl at a house party, from the perspective of the partygoers who witnessed it.

Reviewed by girlinthepages on

3 of 5 stars

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I received this book at ALA after indicating that I was interested in heavier contemporaries at the publisher's booth. It didn't initially catch my attention and didn't make it to my "most coveted" ARC pile, as I had heard very little about it. Once I took the time to dive into it, I realized what an important addition to the YA book section it is. Clearly influenced by recent stories in the media involving sexual assault instances that are documented via social media where classmates and peers neglected to help the victim, this book is a look at the aftermath of the assault, and the conflicting emotions that the protagonists faces as someone who finds out about classmates she's known for years perpetrating unthinkable acts against an old friend of hers.

Overall: I thought this book took an interesting POV by focusing on the aftermath of the assault through the eyes of someone who finds out about it third hand, and really focuses on the cyber behavior of teenagers and young adults and how rape culture is so prevalent within communities. While the writing style didn't overly impress me, the themes and story is an important addition to the YA genre, and very relevant right now.

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Reading updates

  • Started reading
  • 26 September, 2015: Finished reading
  • 26 September, 2015: Reviewed