Sarah Dessen Books

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Sarah Dessen is an American novelist that writes YA romance. The bestseller was born in 1970 in Evanston, Illinois, to University of North Carolina professors. She went to Greensboro College in North Carolina. Although, she dropped out before finishing her studies.

Eventually, she graduated from the University of North Carolina – Chapel Hill, where she pursued creative writing. The author had a tumultuous childhood. A shy and quiet child, Dessen has discussed on numerous occasions the relationship she had with a 21-year-old boy when she was 15.

The author doesn’t blame the gentleman in question. Dessen was a troubled child that took drugs and lied to her mother. She also spent more time in the company of the 21-year-old than was reasonable. So, she was not surprised when he took an interest in her.

Although, she cut all ties with him soon after. She also agrees that he was partly to blame because he should have known better. Writing was a natural outcome of the author’s obsession with reading.

Her childhood was filled with books because her father was a Shakespeare professor. The stories she read made her school life more tolerable. Dessen hated high school. And rather than participating in the school’s activities, she preferred to hang out in the parking lot.

When she was young, Dessen would invent stories about the fictional family that lived in her beloved dollhouse. She was competent enough to type her stories on a manual typewriter by eleven.

The only activity that could hold her interest in school was writing. College showed her that writing wasn’t just a hobby. With the help of her teachers, she saw the potential it held as a career and chose to pursue it.

The decision to write for younger readers was not intentional. She did not realize that her first published novel was YA until her agent mentioned it. Dessen used a teen narrator simply because it made sense at the time.

Once her agent highlighted Dessen’s strengths as a YA author, she was tempted to resist the pull because the notion of being pigeonholed into that particular genre did not appeal to her. She wanted the freedom to write in any genre she wanted.

But Dessen chose to trust her agent, and the decision paid off. The author has nothing but good things to say about her agent because the literary professional is not afraid to tell Dessen the truth.

She has spoken of moments in the past when she submitted subpar books because she was tired of writing or she needed money. But her agent rejected her submissions and warned her about the folly of releasing low-quality work.

Dessen appreciates those moments because they forced her to write and deliver higher-quality manuscripts. She encourages first-time novelists to write even when they don’t feel like it. She understands their pain.

Dessen has plenty of days where writing is the last thing she wants to do. Nonetheless, she will drag herself to the upstairs office and force herself to write.

Sarah Dessen Awards

Dessen has received the Margaret A. Edwards Award.

Best Sarah Dessen Books

The author loves pop culture. She takes every opportunity to discuss her favorite shows, especially on her blog. Dessen’s best books include:

Just Listen: Some people think Annabel has a great life because of what they see in her television commercial. But she knows better. Sophie was mean. However, she was also exciting.

More importantly, Sophie was her friend. Everything changed on one harrowing night. Now, Annabel is alone. With Sophie having dropped her, she has no one to sit with her at lunch.

Her home life is just as problematic now that anorexia has become such an obstacle for her older sister. Annabel’s only hope is Owen, a tall, reformed bad boy.

The Truth About Forever: Macy’s boyfriend was off to Brain camp, leaving her to grieve her father’s death. Macy’s future seemed bleak. The notion of spending her days at a tedious job at the library and preparing for the SATs did not appeal to her.

Fortunately, a catering job at Wish had come along with its chaotic crew, not to mention her sister’s renovation project. Then there was Wes, an artistic boy with a curious past.

Macy did not know it, but she was about to question her sheltered life.

When Does The Next Sarah Dessen book come out?

Sarah Dessen doesn't seem to have an upcoming book. Their newest book is The Rest of the Story and was released on June, 4th 2019.

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