Weekly Blog Post: The Boyfriend List

The Boyfriend List by E. Lockhart

     I'd like to say that this book is the only book that actually can relate to most of us in this gigantic world, but I can't, since there are numerous amounts of books that I have not even laid a finger on yet. So I'll just say that this book is amazing, baffling, and astonishing. I've never read a book that had so much relations to myself and yet so much difference. Please open this book, and I mean please; you're not going to regret it, I promise you. Everything that you learn in this book will never be forgotten. Hence, why don't we start on this fabulous adventure? A story of friendship, honesty, self-discovery, acceptance, and forgiving and forgetting awaits.

     I'm not good at friendships, I'll tell you that. I get betrayed, I feel jealousy, I can back-stab. That's why I love Ruby (the main character) so much; she does everything her own way, even if it's wrong. I've never learned how to stay perfectly nice and normal in a friendship; sure, sometimes it's irritating, but most of the time, it's unstoppable. Bad friends, good friends; all labels, but are they really that necessary? I know in a way that all my friends are just doing what they think is best; not what anybody else thinks. So when Ruby gets told off by her best friend and her group of friends, I can really see the short fumes all of her friends have. I know Ruby is not a perfect person and if even I can accept her, why can't her own friends accept her? I've always seen friendship as a thing that's easy to bend and break and I know that sometimes we bend it way too hard. And maybe Ruby did bend a little more than everyone else, but that's her way of living and making a friendship. What she's done is right, in her point of view. There is no right and there is no wrong; there's only the road that you choose to take.

     I've never had a voice inside me, never. When I got into challenges that I couldn't overcome, I would give up and cower in fear. Sometimes I wouldn't even be able to tell the truth; I would just lie or say nothing. Ruby is the kind of girl that I am; shy, voiceless, powerless. Over the years, I've learned that speaking up guarantees you an image that makes you seem strong and powerful; Ruby has learned too. Ruby is the girl who you would identify as not too opinionated, but too weak. She really never speaks of her own thoughts; instead, she wells them up in her heart where she can't tell anyone. And sad enough, I'm just like her. I like to think that I'm not afraid to speak and not afraid to tell the world what's really up, but truth is, I'm as scared as Ruby. I guess our modernized society had taught me that no one really cares, no matter how much they seem like it. So I wonder, is it really my fault that I've been taunted by society? Or can we blame society? Well, I believe that everyone has influenced society itself and that's why everybody's so scared and just... threatened by it. Honesty is the best policy, but who says it's the best inspiration?

     Speaking of everyone these days, I would like to say that every single person on Earth is led by other people. They are influenced, pressured, taught by other people; not themselves. It hurts me severely to know that Ruby is just like that. I'm pretty much all for being myself and I must admit, it is hard. Everyone's always doing what the majority is doing and that leaves no space for themselves and definitely no place for self-discovery. I hate to say this, but everyone is dependent on each other. There's no way of being without another person there for us to cope with. Ruby is the girl who will do anything to be known, to be popular; even if it means that she would have to do things she never, ever thought of doing. She worries about perfect, good-for-nothing people and they're who Ruby truly wants to be. So again: did we really do this to society? Is our world really this shallow? I'm starting to believe so, I fear. Personalities and love are being thrown out for looks and wealth.

     As for Ruby wanting to be anything, but a social outcast, she reminds me of my own life. You see, accepting others is not easy and particularly hard for others. I've gotten used to names and insults because of my looks, my race, and even because of how I laugh. I mean, how superficial are we, people? I know exactly what Ruby is feeling and I know it's not a good feeling to have. All Ruby wants to be is popular and to be easily accepted but what she doesn't know is what she really wants in life. She can't help but impact on other people's opinions.  She's scared of being hurt and rejected, but in while she's busy trying to get ''hot'' and known, she's really hurting herself. She can't see that her life is based on other people's views and thoughts. And that's just how easy it is to get affected by acceptance. I try to believe that we are all the same things and we're all equal, but everyday, someone or something changes that thought. I'm struggling, just like Ruby, to get the respect I deserve.

     This theme is the topic that I've been aching to tell you about: forgiving and forgetting. My friend always tells me this and sometimes she even uses it to go against me, but when I think about it, it's not at all easy to forget, much less forgive. I've had obstacles thrown at me and troubles I've strained to get rid of and they always be a permanent part of my brain; they not only remind me daily that I've faced harder times, but they show me that life isn't always a dream. So, by now, you probably think I'm an evil person who never seems to forget about anything, but I'm just speaking in the view of Ruby's friends. I know that back-stabbing the evil term here and how when it really happens, all your good memories can be completely erased. I just wonder how and why some people aren't able to forgive. Forgiveness is a present that can never be bought and that's what's so special about it. I've forgave about a hundred mistakes other people made and Ruby has too. She learns along the way that to forgive one person, you must understand the person. I've never received completely 100 percent of understanding and so I've never given it, but even a little bit of understanding goes a long way. Understanding is a thing you can always try to do, even if you end up failing.

     This book was not only satisfying, but understanding (wink-wink), humorous, and usually perceived by the mind as ''unforgettable''. You're going to love this book and the emotions dug deep inside it. Authentic and sincere, Ruby will never leave you in this book.