This is one of my all-time favorite books. I got it about four years ago and have reread it many times since. I was twelve when I first read it and am sixteen now. I think that it is one of those books that kind of grows with you, and that you can get something different from every time you read it.The first part of the book is Rose's story. The four sisters' father has just passed away in a boating accident and they are all mourning. Rose has to make sacrifices because money is tight and generally learns a lot about growing up. She falls in love twice; first with preppy, selfish Parker, then with Stephen, whom she later marries. I didn't like her much in her story, to be honest. I did enjoy her more as she grew older and became a secondary character in her sisters's story.Daisy is the second sister and the one i related to the most. She's your typical over-achiever who thrives on pressure. But when she gets injured playing soccer on her school's varsity team, she goes through a rebellious stage and hooks up with a high-school drop-out, Peter. Some of her choices made me cringe, especially when I was younger, but I really understood how she felt about everyone assuming that she was just naturally perfect and cheery. I could also relate to putting too much pressure on yourself and spreading yourself too thin. What I also loved about it was the scenes with Ben at the hospital. Definitely my favorite part of the book.The third sister, Laurel, has to deal with Daisy's death right on the night of her sixteenth birthday. It really came as a shock for me, I wasn't expecting it at all. After that, childhood friend Jack comforts her and she mistakes being grateful and needing his support with love. I liked that it was a lot about becoming more confident in yourself and about how many emotions could be mistaken for love, and that, in doing so, you could hurt many people.Lily's story is the last one and my other favorite. Like her I've always loved writing, and like her (and probably like most teenagers) I struggle with finding my real identity. Even though her story is pretty cliche at some points, i love the parts about her grandmother's diary, her friendship with Daniel, and the creative writing class scenes.Overall, a good book that helps me see a different side of life every time i read it depending on what i'm going through at that moment. I thought I would like reading this book, but I actually loved reading this book. I can’t even say how many times I grabbed it at Barnes and Noble to only put it back on the shelf or scroll past it on Amazon. I am so happy I finally bought it and took the time to read it though. I loved how it was broken into four different stories and each sister experienced different things when they turned sixteen. There was always 2-3 years between each sister as well, so between each stories time went forward 2 or 3 years, but the author kept the reader updated on what had happened with the previous sister. The one theme I did notice with each sister’s story was romance. Each sister has to face difficult issues though in every story and I came to feel like I was apart of their family and absolutely loved all of the characters. I definitely had my share of both laughing and crying when reading this book and at one point felt like someone ripped my heart out because I just couldn’t believe or accept what had happened.
What do You think about The Year I Turned 16 (2000)?
this book is so sad. i love it but its really intense
—Laura
