Touching story about a teenager who has bitten off way more than she can handle. If you like Lifetime movies, then you'll enjoy Dreamland. ( )

I can't really say much about this book because I am actually still reading it, bit it has me on the edge of my seat!! :)

Reviewed by Ms Bancroft (Language Arts)
Caitlin falls for Rogerson Biscoe partly because she has become invisible to her family. Her older sister has intentionally gone missing and her family, once so perfect, has gotten lost trying to find her. Caitlin has little supervision and less attention. She finds Rogerson exciting and only realizes how dangerous when she is already immersed in a lifestyle she never would have predicted.I recommend this novel because it seems highly realistic. I suspect many teens could related to the issues it brings and maybe some could be enlightened about how to resolve these conflicts. ( )

I did not like this book and would not have chosen it to read on my own. However it was written well in that it tied the title into the entire feel of the book with Caitlin always going back to her life as if it were a dream ever since Cass left and it all went downhill with the abuse, drugs etc. The characters were also believable and very realistic. I could picture them as any teen in any family going through the same things. I was disappointed with how in detail the author got with the drug usage. I wouldn't want to put this book in the hands of my students or my children any time soon. ( )

Once I got past the introductions I couldn't put this book down. Sarah Dessen describes the feeling and emotions that Caitlin is going through like she has been there herself. It addresses a lot of problems that today's teen face when in high school. ( )

After Caitlin's sister, Cass, runs away to be with her boyfriend, Caitlin is left in her sister's empty footsteps. Caitlin knows that it is impossible to fill Cass's shoes so she decides to do everything that Cass would not do. She does this by dating Rogerson. Once Rogerson begins to abuse Caitlin, she is trapped in their relationship. Caitlin must learn how to free herself from her relationship before things get any worse. ( )

This is one of my all time favorite books. It is very informative about a darker side of teenage dating that I believe is over looked and not noticed very often. The characters in the book are so real and the story line pulls at your heart and stays with you long after you finish the last page. Sarah Dessen once again shows her novel genius.
-susiesview ( )

I loved this book.Caitlin is so real and her situation makes you question everything you thought you would do if you were in that kind of relationship.If you were to start this book knowing nothing of the plot,you would probably love Rogerson and think the book was very funny until the first time he hit her.Unlike some,I did not scream at the book,telling Caitlin to get as far away as she can.I sympathized and understood that she loved him too much. Caitlin's pain jumped from the pages and made this another compelling read from Sarah Dessen. ( )

This is a tough story about a teenage girl who finds herself trapped in an abusive relationship with her boyfriend. She does her best to rationalize and make up excuses for him, but eventually cannot escape the reality of the situation.
Don't miss this book. It will grip and hold you till the very end. ( )

Caitlin O'Koren has always been overshadowed by her older sister Cass. Her best friend is basically the incarnation of pure beauty and everything is going as planned, until Cass runs away right before she is supposed to start at Yale University and leaves Caitlin to old her family together.

After trying to keep her life from being overshadowed by her sister Caitlin becomes a cheerleader and meets Rogerson Biscoe, A dreadlocked hunk who distracts her from her families issues. His lifestyle is full of smoking and partying, completely different from her own. Caitlin does not hesitate as Rogerson fills the hole that Cass's absence has left behind. But as Caitlin falls deeper into Rodgerson's world she finds that everything is not as perfect as it seems and that he is badly bruised and broken.

Being in this relationship changes Caitlin in many ways and if she gets out she just might not be recognizable to anyone, not even her sister.

This is another wonderful book from Sarah Dessen. She really shows the emotions of all involved and shows why some people who are in these types of relationships might have trouble getting out of them. This is a must read for any fan of hers and for any fan of Teen Reads. ( )

If you ever wondered how people get into and stay in abusive relationships, just read this book and you'll never ask again. Very well written, as usual. ( )

I like this book because it is love and what happens when you love the wrong type of person. ( )

Very good book. Not only is the character realistic and her situation horrible yet understandable, but Dessen does a great job weaving together the various storylines. Every character is important and developed to the necessary degree. Even though we all hope we'd have been strong enough to get out of the relationship the moment Rogerson hits her for the first time; we understand (in part to Dessen's build-up and backstory) why she stays with him. ( )

Caitlin wakes up on her 16th birthday to find that her sister has run away. So begins the story of Caitlin finding, and losing herself in a series of unexpected events.

Great story, Dessen never lets me down. ( )

This is the first book I have read by Sarah Dessen, and I loved it. The characters are very real and believable. There was great insight into the topic of abuse in dating relationships. I think this is a great read for teenage girls. It highlights the struggle with finding your own identity, which many teenagers can relate to. ( )

(218/250 pages read)
Caitlin O'Koren, a girl who always followed in her older sister, Cassandra's, footsteps, is pressured into becoming her own person without worrying about if "this is what Cassandra did". Just as any other typical teen would react, when she meets her charming new boyfriend, Rogerson Biscoe, everything gets out of hand where she's getting abused, angrily confronted, and questioned. Everything that was so real to her becomes fictional as if she was in a "dreamland" where the more important things mattered - her grades, her parents, her neighbors, her best friends, her "runaway" sister.

Description: Caitlin O'Koren is a teenager in high school. She always claimed to becoming in as second best next to her sister Cassandra O'Koren. She loves her family very much and wishes Boo and Stewart, her neighbors, were her parents. Caitlin changes throughout this book because she gets involved in too many things that typical teens would get involved in throughout high school. She turns from a sweet, innocent girl to a conservative, all-to-herself, skinny stranger to her surroundings. People, situations, and fights get in the way of her growth as a perfect girl.

I could relate SO well. Since it's a young adult book, it's meant for young adults to understand the results of the situations Caitlin goes through. I could relate when, in the book, there was a time where Caitlin couldnt' stand her mother getting in on all of her SCHOOL related activities that had nothing to do with home needs.

I'd HIGHLY recommend this to teens because I guarantee all teens will get hooked on it after the 1st chapter because of the way Sarah Dessen writes (SO MUCH like a saturation report). Caitlin comes across things that any other teen would come across and this book gives advice in a non-visible way; a way where you have to read in between the lines.

I love Sarah Dessen's writing. I recommend her to high school students all the time...especially this book. The issues are very real. I had never understood how a reasonable, intelligent girl could be stuck in an abusive relationship...this makes it very clear. ( )

I did not like this at all - it's a lot darker than a lot of Dessen's other novels.

This is a tough story about a teenage girl who finds herself trapped in an abusive relationship with her boyfriend. She does her best to rationalize and make up excuses for him, but eventually cannot escape the reality of the situation.
Don't miss this book. It will grip and hold you till the very end. ( )

Mesmerizing tale of a teenage girl's descent into an addictive relationship after her sister (also her role model/idol) ran away. ( )

http://www.lonelymountain.net/books/m... ( )

Dreamland is one of my favorite books. I first read it with my best friend. We stayed up the whole night reading it and by the end we weer both crying. I bought it about a year later and reread it and still loved it. I think it is a great book and a little different from most of Sarah Dessen's other books because it doesn't have the best ending and she doesn't end up with the guy and I like it that way. ( )

http://welfycatreads.blogspot.com/200... ( )

I was surprised how much I enjoyed reading this story. Dessen writes well. Her characters are believable and their situtations draw you into the story. High school girls love Dessen's books. ( )

Wow! This book packs a punch – literally. Caitlin is devastated when her sister runs away from home to live with her boyfriend – who works on a Jerry Springer type Tv show. To make her mother ( who now has no life because the perfect sister is gone) happy – she tries out for cheerleading and makes the team. One night, on the way home from practice, she meets Rogerson who’s parents are rich and he is like her, the less perfect younger sibling. The 2 fall in love and everything is fine until one night, Caitlin sees R ‘s Dad hit him for being late to a party. Everything is going well until R sees C talking to her photography teacher one night herself then WHAM! R punches her in the head. After making excuses to her parents, he then only hits her where the bruises don’t show! A harrowing, must read book as a warning to any one – you can be smart but fall in with the wrong person and you keep lying to yourself that they really love you.p.123-127Mike Evans tries to warn Caitlin about Rogerson. ( )