Narrated by our protagonist as an old man, the story is predominantly set in the early 1960s, the year in which he "discovered love". Sent to a school for hopeless cases on the East Anglian coast, the narrator finds little of interest in his daily life, with boring school work, bunkmates and professors that he can't stand, yet no home that he wants to return to. It all changes one day, when on a cross country run, he meets Finn, the boy who lives by the sea, and everything changes. Finn, the mysterious boy who rarely speaks a word, who lives by himself in a small run down cottage on the beach. As far as books go, I loved this more than How I Live Now, even when I didn't think that would be possible. As a story though, this resonated perfectly with me. Child on the cusp of adulthood, searching for something he does not understand, something he does not yet have, nor does he know to want it. Until he meets a boy who has all those things.

And Finn, oh Finn. If it is possible to fall for a character in fiction, I fell for him. Such gentleness and hardness all at the same time. Mysterious, yet longing. Each time when I thought I had come to understand him and his friendship with the narrator, I realised I knew nothing of him. It is Finn that is the heart of this story, and Finn whom we are all searching for or longing to become. And that is the beauty of this story. I don't think I can describe it as well as Nymeth, except to say that there is that line, between wanting to love someone, and wanting to be them, that their life is somewhat superior to your own, and that is explored so delicately here.

How is it that as an adult now, I keep discovering these wonderful, insightful books aimed at teenagers? I am quite envious, having not read anything even remotely comparable at that age. Yes there is a twist in What I Was, and although I knew from other reviews that it was coming, I did not look for it and thus did not expect it. I was somewhat sideblinded, and yet not in the typical dramatic way. This twist is perfectly relevant to the story and ultimately how the reader sees the characters. I long to reread the book now that I am aware of this revelation, and I truly hope that it will add to my enjoyment of the book, rather than detract from it.

My favorite Meg Rosoff book so far. How I Live Now was good, but I was stunned by this one. From the dust jacket annotation I wasn't sure if I was going to be able to buy the plot, but once I started the story I found it perfectly plausible. The twist ending is something I hadn't seen coming, which is unusual -- usually I guess surprise endings ahead of time, which is kind of a drag. Best of all is the atmosphere of the story. From Rosoff's descriptions I could practically see the North Sea fog and the cold of the icy waters and the unheated school.

This book won't appeal to people who need a lot of action in their stories -- it's more your typical English novel, moving sedately along. But if you go for that sort of thing -- and I do, sometimes -- I HIGHLY recommend this. ( )

Loved it.... I thought this book was absolutely amazing. In fact, ever since I've read this book, every book I read seems to be a search to find a book that I liked as much as this one.

I'm in love with this author! ( )

Pretty good. Evocative of mood and atmosphere, but somehow the central revelation had little impact for me. Expected more. ( )

An old man tells the story of one year at boarding school in the 60's in England when he was 16. He meets "Finn" and is enchanted by him. Finn lives without anyone and has no rules to follow. The narrator retells what he learned about himself through Finn.

While the premise of the story was good, I found it lacking at times. ( )