Sales, Leila. This Song Will Save Your Life. New York: Macmillan, 2013.
Genre: Contemporary
Intended Audience: 14 and above
Personal reaction to the book
This Song Will Save Your Life is about a music-obsessed loner teen, Elise, who starts to disc jockey on the side at an underground pop-up club.
While there she meets Char, a disc jockey who is older and more experienced than her, who teaches her how to disc jockey. Eventually Elise starts to headline shows as her popularity and skills grow.
However, nothing is ever easy, and drama between Char, Elise, and her new friends spills over into her personal and hellish school life, making her life a nightmare.
This was a quick read, and one that I enjoyed despite not really caring for Elise, Char, or anyone except Elise’s dad. I liked that it focused so much on music, and it really did reignite my passion for music, opening me up to possibilities. The recommended tracks at the end of the book opened my eyes to some great tunes, and I started to listen to more music on my phone and computer. The book also dealt with weighty issues like bullying, popularity, divorce, and suicide, and each of those topics was treated with respect. I think it would be a good book to have in a library because it really does have a lot of energy to it and was a refreshing read. Elise, though I don’t agree with everything she did and honestly at times she seemed totally immature, was a compelling character and good narrator. That being said, I wasn’t blown away. In the end it was just okay.
Author Facts
- Sales claims that she “almost never remember[s] where [her] story ideas come from.”
- A book that Sales recently enjoyed is Cherry Money Baby by John M. Cusik.
- Sales’ favorite line in the novel is from Elise: “Sometimes people think they know you. They know a few facts about you, and they piece you together in a way that makes sense to them. And if you don’t know yourself very well, you might even believe that they are right. But the truth is, that isn’t you. That isn’t you at all.”
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