About David

by Susan Beth Pfeffer

When her close friend since childhood murders his adoptive parents and kills himself, 17-year-old Lynn is haunted by the tragedy.

Genres: Young Adult, Fiction, Novels, Read For School

167 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1980

About the author

Susan Beth Pfeffer was an American author best known for young adult and science fiction. After writing for 35 years, she received wider notice for her series of post-apocalyptic novels, officially titled "The Life as We Knew It Series", but often called "The Last Survivors" or "Moon Crash" series, some of which appeared on The New York Times Best Seller list.

Reviews

[Stay Fetters · Rating 4 out of 5]

"We all live in private little hells. Even the happiest of us. There are always things that pain us. But to exist, you learn to live with the pain. You learn to protect yourself."

This book was one I almost bought at the thrift store due to the synopsis. I put it back because it was completely damaged but it was one that stuck in my mind after leaving it behind, so the library for the win!

This was probably the heaviest young adult book that I’ve ever read. I wasn’t expecting it to be so in-depth and real. A lot of books sugarcoat how things are and the reactions from people who were close to them. There is nothing of the sort here. It was a hard read, a really good one, and a damn important one.

We all react to things differently and sometimes it takes some people longer to cope than others. We’re always so quick to judge and we truly never know what someone is going through. Instead of putting them down, we need to be more sympathetic. At times, we need to lend that shoulder for them to cry on, a sympathetic ear for when they need to talk, or even just be present when they don’t want to be alone. I know this opened my eyes and I hope it did the same for you.

[Kate · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book came to mind as a fellow librarian was searching for a different book, also about suicide. What I remember about this book was that the main character's best friend had killed himself, and she learned what he went through in the time before his death from his journal. The description tells a bit more (that David had also killed his adoptive parents before taking his own life). I remember liking this book, but I also remember getting it confused with The Year Without Michael.

[Matthew · Rating 5 out of 5]

Some of the best books I've ever read were rare finds at second bookstores. About David is one of these books. A gem of a discovery. However, I found this book, in the kid's section, and it's NOT a children's book. I'd classify it as a young adult.

About David had me at the first line on the back cover: "At first Lynn can't believe it. Her close friend and neighbor, seventeen-year-old David Morris, has murdered his parents and committed suicide..."

While this might seem like a depressing story, it's fascinating in many ways. First, it was written in 1980 and for a book being almost 50 years old it still holds up, and I didn't find it dated, especially in our climate of children and guns, disturbed behaviors, etc. The book has a character that comes out as gay, they use the term "mental health" and the main character goes to see a therapist, and they're portrayed in a positive light. All very now and today.

The story is told through the main character's diary entries, from the moment she finds out what happened, through her recovery from this tragedy. The book goes on to showcase how someone's actions can cause such a catastrophic effect on those around them, and it's the ones who are left to live that suffer the most.

I enjoyed reading this book. I love finding these out-of-print, obscure titles and it always makes me a little sad because they're so good, and yet they're unknown. I think one day I'd like to start my library of lost and found titles. No popular books, just all those forgotten books that have been lost, but takes someone like me to rediscover them from obscurity. It's also less than 200 pages which is perfect! My rating - 5/5

[Miren · Rating 3 out of 5]

*3.75 stars in reality
This book was so good, but heavy at the same time.
(Content warnings include: Suicide and Rape).
The only things that bugged me were that there were some grammar errors that messed me up, and some parts were a bit cringy in my opinion, but that’s all I have to say about the writing.
The whole “rape” topic, I feel was put in mostly for shock, and it was also done kinda carelessly, in my opinion.
But other than that it was really good, I’m sure this books has pulled me out of my slump. (Come on, the fact that the book is actually Lynn’s journal? Genius.)
All in all, I great start to my reading year!

[Reba · Rating 3 out of 5]

While this is a bit dated, I still found myself engaged with the story. There was a bit of nostalgia reading this, I feel like I could have found and read this book as a teenager, and that added another enjoyable element to the reading.

[Greta Stone · Rating 5 out of 5]

People need to read this.

[bird · Rating 5 out of 5]

dr melfi wept!!!!!!!!

[Stephanie · Rating 1 out of 5]

If I could give this book less than I star I would.I had read this book many years ago in my early teens and for reasons I can longer understand, remembered it fondly.
A few weeks ago I found it on sale online cheaply.

I was appalled at what I read this time around. David's parents were shallow bitches who spent his whole life making him feel unworthy and inadequate in every possible way.

Its perfectly understandable as to why he killed them.

But they weren't the only bitches in the book.Almost everyone in the book was selfish, shallow and self centered. And a bitch.

Right on down from the narrator Lynn's(who was supposedly David's oldest and closest friend) parents to her "best" friend Steffie to many of their classmates.

At first I felt sorry for Lynn being surrounded by such shallow people.

I began to lose respect for Lynn when after Steffie was cruel to her about the tragedy at a party not even 3 months after, she went crawling back to her begging for her forgiveness and friendship.

If Steffi had done that to me, I'd have kicked her in the face. Finally, towards the end of the book I realized that Lynn was nearly as shallow as everyone else she was surrounded with. She was her environment, not just a reflection of it.

I understand that modern society has greatly shortened the grieving process but in real life I don't think that if a true friend of yours died in such a tragedy that just a few months later you'd be so eagerly looking forward to college,career, moving on and whatever lay ahead.

If you could , then I'd suggest that the person who died wasn't as close of a friend and didn't mean as much to you as you thought.

I understand that people eventually have to go on with life after any loss or tragedy and I'm not criticizing that in itself but to be able to move on so quickly says something in itself I believe.

In closing,even though Lynn disparaged David's actions as "crazy" at the end of the book, I understand perfectly why he did what he did.In my opinion, he was driven to it by the mental abuse he recieved from his adoptive parents all his life.
The people surrounding him were just lucky that he didn't totally snap and take out more people other than just himself and his adoptive parents.

In the end, the only person I felt sympathy for was David himself.


I hope to rid myself of this book through an online book exchange I belong to.

[Brooklyn Bartlett · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lynn and David have been best friends since they can remember,but everything is about to change when David murders himself and his parents. Nobody knows what to think it would never be the same without David. Lynn is traumatized; but the worst part is she can't remember what the last thing David and her had talked about. All she can remember is they talked in the lunch room. Lynn doesn't eat in the lunch room anymore, she's slowly gliding away from her friends, and just isn't the same person she was when David was around.
Lynn finds out her name is on David's will. David left her his guitar, and his notebooks? Lynn has no idea what these notebooks are. She later finds them in her attic and finds out there not just any ordinary notebooks, but that they contained David's thoughts and feelings. Lynn would soon find things out about David that nobody in the world ever knew.
I would have never seen myself reading a book like this, But my cousin Erica gave us a box of her old book's and I decided I'd give this one a try.
This book was really sad and I couldn't stand it! It seemed like everything between David and his parent's would turn out fine and then Bam! My favorite part was when Lynn found his notebooks and starting reading them because they were really interesting, even though they were also very sad.
I liked near the end of the book when Lynn felt at peace and remembered what David and her had talked about and just felt normal in a sense.
What I didn't like about the book was all the pain and sadness everybody went through when David did what he did. I could sort of see how Lynn was feeling I had a pretty good image of her in my mind.
Overall the book was very well written and I reccomend it to anyone but especially tennagers and young adults. I would definately read another novel by Susan Beth Pfeffer.

[Maria Hooley · Rating 5 out of 5]

The author pulls no punches in this novel, and it takes you right where it says it's going to. Nobody wants to talk about teenagers and guns, especially not when the result ends with a suicide and murdered parents, but the thing is, teenagers do think about these things. Pfeffer is amazing at putting you inside a character's head and then turning the gears, and readers are left with the feeling that it isn't just a story that's unfolding: it's a journey that somehow we all have a place in. Granted, it's not a happy journey, but it is an important one, and if you are expecting everything to wrap up in a nice, neat package, let me warn you. This book isn't any neater than life itself. Don't expect answers. It's more about the questions we, as human beings, should be asking.

[Ayla Stierwalt · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was first read when I was in middle school. I wasn't really into reading as I am now. This book fallowed me throughout my adulthood. I remember it being one of the best mystery I read as a middle school student. I just had to reread this book again. I bought the book and I'm sad to say the book did not hold up to what I made it to be in my mind. I think I made this book so beyond amazing, remember I haven't matured yet. I would highly recommend this book to any child in middle school. I feel the book is a direct hit to that mind set, as an adult I would recommend to not worry so much about it. The only reason I will read this story again is to relive that childhood memory.

[Katie · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a book that was difficult to find a copy of because of its publication date, but there is nothing dated about it. I wanted to read this book because I had read other books by Susan Beth Pfeffer and I loved her style. This book did not disappoint. It was so full of emotion and so real that I just couldn't put it down.

[Christie · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this many many moons ago. I absolutely loved this book then. I would love to read it again to see if I feel the same. I carried it with me through many moves over the years and think I need to go dig it out of a box somewhere.

[Stephen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting take on the events following a teen's murder of his adoptive parents and suicide.

This book will not be everyone's cup of tea but it does present a unique story and may offer some healing insights for someone who is troubled by similar events in their own lives.

[LittleDeadRedGoddessPersephone · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this years ago when I was in junior high. I like to reread books,including books I read as a kid. This book holds up. You understand Lynn and the pain she went through. I feel like the book was way ahead of it's time. I think it was written in the 70's.

[Krista the Krazy Kataloguer · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another excellent book by Pfeffer, this time a story told from the point of view of a teenage girl trying to understand why her long-time friend shot his parents and then himself.

[Najila · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of the most emotional books I've ever read.

[Erin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Re-read August 2001

[Mrs. Y. · Rating 5 out of 5]

this is a good book I read when I was in middle school and now I read again