Saint Anything by Sarah Dessen

Saint Anything by Sarah Dessen

Peyton, Sydney's charismatic older brother, has always been the star of the family, receiving the lion's share of their parent's attention and - lately - concern. When Peyton's increasingly reckless behaviour culminates in an accident, a drunk driving conviction, and a jail sentence, Sydney is cast adrift, searching for her place in the family and the world. When everyone else is worried about Peyton, is she the only one concerned about the victim of the accident? Enter the Chathams, a warm, chaotic family who run a pizza parlour, play bluegrass on the weekends, and pitch in to care for their mother, who has multiple sclerosis. Here Sydney experiences unquestioning acceptance. And here she meets Mac, gentle, watchful, and protective, who makes Sydney feel seen, really seen, for the first time.

Review:

Saint Anything is one heck of a roller-coaster. One minute you're free, soaring above the rest of the world with nothing but the wind in your hair and your heart in your throat to keep you company, and then you remember what's to come. The downfall, the drop, the triple loop. By then, it's too late to stop, you're in too deep.

This latest Dessen book, as I'm sure you've heard, deals with some much deeper issues than previous books such as Lock & Key, Just Listen and What Happened To Goodbye. When Sydney's brother, Peyton, shining star of their family, paralyses an innocent boy while drunk driving, Sydney is left to face the guilt of what happened. Her dad isn't interested, her mum refuses to believe that Peyton is at fault and the only person she has for company is Peyton's friend, Ames, who isn't exactly the type of guy you want around a teenage girl. Or anyone. Sydney is invisible, until Mac see's her.

Yes, Saint Anything explores themes of assault, addiction (drugs and alcohol), manipulation, Multiple Sclerosis and it does this in a stunning, dark and honest way. Dessen has a way of writing that will make sure you don't leave this book unscathed. Yet with all of the dark comes Dessen's classic light. Saint Anything doesn't skip out on the whimsical feeling that you will often find in her other books. Saint Anything still inspires you to find those people, your people, and does so by injecting the most beautiful characters you will ever meet and a pizza parlour.

The Chatham family is filled with probably some of the best character's that Dessen's ever written. Their father, who works day and night at the pizza parlour to help support their family but still finds time to spend with them. Their father who loves bluegrass and who evidently helped Layla find her 'quirky' (God, I hate that word) side. Their mother, oh their mother, who acts as their guiding light. Their mother is the life and the soul of the Chatham's and it's so beautiful and heart wrenching to see them rush to help her whenever she needs it. Layla, my precious Layla, don't ever stop eating your fries. In fact, the friendship between Layla and Sydney is one of my favourite parts of Saint Anything. Layla accepted Sydney when she needed it the most, Layla took in Sydney and helped her to become a part of the group, a part of the family and Sydney did everything she could to return that favour. Watching the push and pull between Layla and Sydney was so rewarding and I hope that Dessen keeps writing characters just as good, if not, better. Oh, and Mac. Of course, there is a Mac. The gentle, passionate, understanding Mac who serves the romance to the story. Reading about his and Sydney's adventures while delivering pizza (Or not delivering pizza) was so sweet and I think that although it's not my favourite romance that Dessen has ever written, it was absolutely perfect for Saint Anything. The Walt Disney quote 'The flower that blooms in adversity is the rarest and most beautiful of all' sums up the Chatham family to a T.

Having said this all, even if you haven't loved - or even liked - previous novels by Sarah Dessen, I think that she's worth a second shot for Saint Anything. Even if you don't like the book, I hardly doubt that you'll regret reading it.

"The future was one thing that could never be broken, because it had not yet had the chance to be anything"