Book: Exposed by Kimberly Marcus

Publishing Info: Published by Random House Books; 255 pages in hardcover

Goodreads Summary: Sixteen-year-old Liz is Photogirl—sharp, focused and confident in what she sees through her camera lens. Confident that she and Kate will be best friends forever.

But everything changes in one blurry night. Suddenly, Kate is avoiding her, and people are looking the other way when she passes in the halls. As the aftershocks from a startling accusation rip through Liz’s world, everything she thought she knew about photography, family, friendship and herself shifts out of focus. What happens when the picture you see no longer makes sense? What do you do when you may lose everything you love most? 

Exposed is such an interesting book.  I liked that it was told through poetry, and the fact that it is through the eyes of the rapists’ brother made it a very interesting read.  I feel like a lot of books about rape are about the victim, but I may be wrong here, since Speak is the only book that comes to mind.  It is nice to see all of the people who are affected by it, not just those directly involved.

You can see life around Liz slowly change and fall apart.  Her relationship with Kate changes completely, and by the end of the book, they barely speak.  Her brother is also compeltely different by the end of the book, and she is torn between being glad he was found innocent and wanting justice for Kate.  You see her parents obsession with the trial, and the effect it has on them, and you see that people at school start acting differently.

I thought it was very moving, and the fact that it was told in verse made it very real.  You saw her thoughts and feelings spill out, and by the end, she learns that things are not always black-and-white.  I really felt for Liz, because she was caught in the middle, and wasn’t sure who to believe.

It gets a 4 out of 5.  It felt very real, and it was very vivid.