Liar

Liar by Justine Larbalestier
Published by Bloomsbury USA Children's Books in 2009
384 pages
Warning: This novel contains sexual content, language, murder, and an unreliable narrator. Also, some scary images and narration which may scare younger readers (But I would not recommend this to students 14 and younger)
Genre: Friends and Society, Family, Mystery, Suspense

Micah is a compulsive liar; she openly declares her compulsion, and from the first page, we as readers do not know if we should trust her. Despite her continuous oath to tell the truth and not tell a lie, we find out she does. At school, her friend Zach has been murdered. The police are questioning Micah because of her habits, and believe (along with friends at school) she is a suspect. Fighting the accusations, Micah begins to reveal what we think is her true character.

This book will throw the reader for a spin! It is difficult to become engrossed in the novel when we are seeing things from the eyes of an unreliable narrator. Despite this, we become enthralled with the world that is Micah! Her lies press us to keep reading deeper into her world of deception. Form the first sentence to the last sentence, we don't know if we can believe anything Micah has told us. A definite, must read. I simply suggest allowing several hours to finish it in one sitting (and a good supply of CHEEZ-ITS); it's that good.