Review by Alex: The Center of the Universe

The Center of the Universe: Yep, That Would Be Me by Anita Liberty

I CAN'T FIX THE WORLD.
I CAN ONLY SIT BACK AND CRITICIZE IT.

Welcome to the story of my life. Well, at least the story of my junior and senior years of high school. It''s a profound, touching, and hilarious (if I do say so myself) tale told through cunning poems, revelatory diary entries, perspicacious (look it up) word definitions, shrewd bits of advice, and off-the-cuff (but brilliant) insights.

You'll probably relate to a lot of it. Especially the parts about hating my parents, never feeling cool enough, failing my first attempt at the SATs, having an incredibly romantic (but one-sided) relationship with the coolest guy in school, and getting hexed by my ex-best friend who became a Wiccan.

And if you can't relate? Well, step to the back of that humongous line. You''ll probably be right behind my family. If you're lucky, my mom''ll bring snacks.

How can I be who I am and who my family wants me to be when the person I am wouldn't be caught dead with the person my family wants me to be?

The book’s written like a diary, with SAT words and example sentences, poems, and charts rating how annoying her parents are. I’m still trying to figure out how much of this book is fictional. I thought it was all made up, but How to Heal the Hurt by Hating, also by Anita Liberty, is real… so I’m confused. I attempted to Google and figure it out, but my Google skills are somehow very lacking.

But this book is hilarious. Seriously. Anita is completely self absorbed and arrogant, but unapologetically so. She doesn’t pretend to care about anyone outside herself and her little bubble. She never goes on random tangents about poor starving kids in Africa. The book is focused on Anita, and only Anita. But really, that’s okay. Because Anita has her problems, and she makes it so hysterically funny to read about.

She’s every teenager who has ever been unsatisfied with life. She has parents who she hates a lot of the time. She makes tables and rates each thing her parents do that qualify as infractions or compensation to her. She writes angsty and hilarious poetry. I’m not a poetry fan- but still. She goes through her fair share of boyfriend troubles. And then later in the epilogue writes about what happens to them.

Anita chronicles her life from age 16 to 18. It skips a lot obviously, since there’s a little less than 300 pages, and no one can write a whole detailed two year span in that number of pages. But the important stuff is still there.

Slightly raucous with no filter, which makes the book all the better. Looking for a something to brighten up your day? Wanting to escape problems in your life? Read this.