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You Don't Know Me by David Klass
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You Don't Know Me (original 2001; edition 2002)

by David Klass

MembersReviewsPopularityAverage ratingConversations / Mentions
1,0573419,268 (3.89)1 / 13
Fourteen-year-old John creates alternative realities in his mind as he tries to deal with his mother's abusive boyfriend, his crush on a beautiful, but shallow classmate and other problems at school.
Member:death91
Title:You Don't Know Me
Authors:David Klass
Info:HarperTeen (2002), Paperback, 352 pages
Collections:Your library
Rating:
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Work Information

You Don't Know Me by David Klass (2001)

  1. 10
    Twisted by Laurie Halse Anderson (samlives2)
    samlives2: Another novel involving a teenage boy and his family and social troubles.
  2. 10
    Tribes by Arthur Slade (meggyweg)
    meggyweg: The protagonists in both books have a very weird, quirky inner voice and habits, as well as having daddy issues.
  3. 00
    Jack Tumor by Anthony McGowan (meggyweg)
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» See also 13 mentions

Showing 1-5 of 34 (next | show all)
This was one of my favorite books as a young teen. I understood what John was feeling and sympathized with him every step of the way. I think it is a good book for anyone who understands what it is like to retreat into your head rather than deal with what is going on in your world. It's something that all adolescents could appreciate, though, even if they're not an outcast like John. ( )
  widdersyns | Jul 19, 2020 |
When it all unravels its amazing how much people care. ( )
  AdrianaGarcia | Jul 10, 2018 |
“You don’t know me” by David Klass did well giving a first person point of view from 14-year old boy. It had some funny moments, but it mostly showed how bad his life really was getting into the story. He says he lives his “life that is not a life” with a “father that is not his father not because he is not my father, but because he hits me when your not around” showing things are not the way it seems. We, as the readers, learn the relationship between him is abusive “the second slap catches me me on top of my ear and is so hard it would knock me off my feet if he weren't holding me tightly. There are tears in my eyes, and I am suddenly looking back at the man who is not my father…” He attempts to go throughout the day of school seeming like nothing bad goes on at home, but you can tell it’s not at all that easy. For example, in math class “of course, I do not understand the slightest syllable of algebra gibberish that Mrs Moonface is uttering, but she cannot tell that from my appearance” and band class “the reason I am in your band room, …is because the process of elimination has brought me here. There is nothing I am better at than not being able to play this tuba that is not a tuba..” He comes around to help you see the people who knows him don’t actually know him. That’s why he always repeats the words “You don’t know me. You don’t know me at all.”
  T_Walls | Nov 28, 2017 |
My 14-year-old son chose this book and he started laughing on page one, telling me "Mom, I love this book." So I read it. It is a wry, witting look at a teenage boy's attempt to navigate life, high school, and dating while suffering abuse at the hands of his mom's boyfriend. I, too, loved it. ( )
  Stembie3 | Jun 14, 2015 |
This is a wonderous novel by David Klass that is about a mysterious young man named John who gets stepped on by everything and everybody. A middle school reader will ultimately and immediately connect to the wonders of this novel but, it gets boring at times.To me, this is a weaker novel by David. He could have thought John out more with his personality. I almost put the book down after the first twenty-five pages, which seemed as though he rushed through it. As you can see, I have barely anything to write about because the book was a little plain.

But, some parts, like the end, showed David's true side he is as a writer. Intensity, emotion, and magical realism made up for the horrible and unreadable beginning or I would have given this less stars and appreciation. Not as good as The Caretaker Trilogy or Danger Zone (all of which I have read) but all shows that this is the style and greatness by the one and only David Klass. ( )
  br14nama | Oct 13, 2013 |
Showing 1-5 of 34 (next | show all)
Juan Manuel Trujillo Ch
10. B
You Dont Know Me
David Klass
2006 copyright
Number of pages: 352

On the surface, John is just like most teens: he goes to high school every day, where he has several good friends and pines over the most popular girl. However, no one knows that every evening John is abused by his stepfather.

This is a terribly sad novel that shows how easily an abused kid can slip through the cracks. Abused and hurt children like John are usually too scared to tell anyone. John is convinced no one knows or cares about him. He's sure his teachers' own lives are so unhappy that they want to make others miserable too. He thinks nothing of leaving his best friend when he's in big trouble, knowing that his friend would do the same to him. And, because we know his secret, he is convinced that we, the readers, are the worst people of all. No one has rescued him yet. Everyone, even his own mother, has let John continue to live in fear. Why should he have faith in anyone?

John finally does get help --- and he lucks out. Help comes without him ever having to speak up. In reality, victims of abuse almost always need to take the terrifying step of telling someone before they get help.

If you like a book that really gets into a character's head or if you have an interest in psychology, this book is for you. Mixed in with his jaded thoughts, John has the same worries and feelings as any of us, making him a completely understandable and likable character. Without being overly dramatic, YOU DON'T KNOW ME packs a lot of action between its covers.
Unfamiliar words: Adamant. page 23. Adjective. insistent. My father is always adamant in brushing my teeth.
Penchant. 54. Noun. strong inclination. i have an strong penchant on doing my friends homework, that's why i like them.
Miser. 77. noun. person who hoards money. my stepfather is a miser, he always ask me to walk rather than to ride my bicycle on my way school.
Euphoria. 165. noun. a strong felling of wellbeing or elation. everytime Charlie smiles at me. euphoria struck me.
lament. 201. express sorrow of. verb. i was lamenting of being alive.
added by Chimuelos | edithttp://www.teenreads.com/reviews/you-dont-know-me, Juan Manuel Trujillo Ch (Mar 1, 2014)
 
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You don't know me. Just for example, you think I'm upstairs in my room doing my homework. Wrong. I'm not in my room. I'm not doing my homework. And even if I were up in my room I wouldn't be doing my homework, so you'd still be wrong.
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Fourteen-year-old John creates alternative realities in his mind as he tries to deal with his mother's abusive boyfriend, his crush on a beautiful, but shallow classmate and other problems at school.

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A surprisingly funny book about a teen boy going through the everyday issues of high school and first love while struggling with his mother's physically abusive boyfriend.
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