Series: Standalone
Release Date: March 10, 2020
It’s been twenty-seven days since Cleo and Layla’s friendship imploded.
Nearly a month since Cleo realized they’ll never be besties again.
Now, Cleo wants to erase every memory, good or bad, that tethers her to her ex-best friend. But pretending Layla doesn’t exist isn’t as easy as Cleo hoped, especially after she’s assigned to be Layla’s tutor. Despite budding new friendships with other classmates—and a raging crush on a gorgeous boy named Dom—Cleo’s turbulent past with Layla comes back to haunt them both.
Alternating between timelines of Then and Now, When You Were Everything blends past and present into an emotional story about the beauty of self-forgiveness, the promise of new beginnings, and the courage it takes to remain open to love.
• Muslim Bengali American SC (supporting character) with a stutter
• Black SC
• Chinese American SC
• Lesbian Korean American SC
• Hijabi Bengali SC
• Indian American SC
• Gay SC
• FF side romance
• Grief
• Bullying
• Divorce
• Adultery/cheating
• Underage drinking
• Discussions of statutory rape
• Slut-shaming
• Teen pregnancy
• Absentee parents
• Girl-hating
• See Ending for HEA status.
• See Possible Triggers for Abuse and OTT sad parts.
Format: Hardcover
Rating: 4.75/5 stars
When You Were Everything is my favourite type of YA novel–rich in character and not afraid to let the romance be secondary to the protagonist’s development. The story is an ode to friendship–of the ones that were identified to others as best friends… and the slow dissolution of that friendship as miscommunication, hurt and pride wreaked its foundation.
The novel begins with the reader discovering Cleo Imani Baker, and her best friend, Layla Hassan, are no longer friends. Cleo and Layla became friends at a crucial point in Cleo’s life after her beloved grandmother had just passed. Ever since that day, Cleo and Layla have put each other before everything. But after Layla befriends the “Chorus Girls,” who make it known that they are not interested in being friends with Cleo, Layla and Cleo’s friendship starts to dissolve.
The dissolution of Cleo and Layla’s friendship is incredibly realistic–having experienced some parts of it myself, as I’m sure others have. I’d say, though, that the most substantial detriments to Cleo and Layla’s bond were that Cleo didn’t realize that Layla making more friends didn’t mean that Cleo wasn’t still important. However, the flip side to that was that Layla failed to recognize her new friends were bullying Cleo and that Layla’s new best friend wanted her to be the centre of Layla’s world, not Cleo. The lack of maturity and self-awareness did both the girls so much harm. But both are only in high school… and, I guess, to develop that maturity, one needs to experience such life lessons.
The most successful part of When You Were Everything was that despite the story being told from Cleo’s perspective, she was a reliable narrator. Admittedly, it took Cleo a while to admit what exactly she did that finally broke her relationship with Cleo. But, her interactions and conversations with Layla during flashbacks to the summer party that started it all, to the present, emphasized that while Layla was horrible, Cleo really wasn’t that much better. Ashley Woodford did an excellent job detailing how devastating it can be to fight with your best friend: they know everything about you, and, as a result, every insecurity, every doubt and every hurt can be used as ammunition. Seeing how Layla allowed her new friends to verbally abuse Cleo–making fun of her hair, her love of Shakespeare, her parents’ separation, to list a few, was devastating to read.
The most realistic–and relatable–aspect of the fights between Cleo and Layla are when Cleo would lash out because she was so hurt, but would then prove that all the horrible things the Chorus Girls were saying to Layla about Cleo were correct. That Cleo was jealous and that she didn’t want Layla to succeed without her. Cleo takes it so far as to capitalize on Layla’s stutter… saying that there’s no way Layla could be successful in her role as the lead in the school musical. In Cleo’s narrative, it comes from a place of concern; Cleo imagines the humiliation Layla would suffer if she’s unable to speak her lines in front of hundreds of people. But, what comes out of Cleo’s mouth is just anger, hurt and betrayal. Cleo gets so angry about the Chorus Girls’ derision and Layla’s silence that Cleo spitefully tells Layla she hopes Layla stutters.
Their relationship eventually becomes so damaged they don’t want to even look at each other. But, the critical information is that the reader doesn’t know what exactly happened between Cleo and Layla. No one knows that all the small, petty issues and the hidden hurts had erupted into one last fight. A fight where both Cleo and Layla said things they cannot take back.
When You Were Everything while a tale of lost friendship was also a story of self-discovery and growth. Watching Cleo opening herself up to Sydney and becoming friends (and more) with Dom was heartwarming. And, while I’m a sucker for sweet romances, I have to say that I preferred Cleo’s growing friendship with Sydney. Cleo learning that not all friendships were doomed like Layla’s was so awesome! And, I sincerely enjoyed how Woodford highlighted Sydney’s relationship with Willa; it didn’t come across as a token lesbian relationship.
The only reason When You Were Everything wasn’t a 5-star read for me was that it took me a while to get used to how the book was written. I felt that the writing style–in the beginning–made it difficult for me to connect to Cleo’s narration. However, once I really got into the story, I quickly forgot about the slow start.
There were two aspects of the book that also really annoyed me. However, they didn’t detract from my rating because they didn’t contradict Cleo’s characterization, and therefore were realistic. The first is when Dom says some hurtful things to Cleo, and Cleo just takes them as truth. Cleo later apologizes to Dom as well, even though her idea (of a fundraiser) came from caring rather than pity. And, despite Dom was the one was so horrible. Another part was Cleo’s lack of realization that rarely is it only one person who is at fault when a marriage falls apart.
I knew even from the beginning that all was not as Cleo thought in regards to her parents’ separation: her Dad was too perfect, and her Mom was too absent. It came across as very biased.
However, it wasn’t until the rumour about why her father left the high school that I realized , of course, he had an affair with Cleo’s favourite teacher. The fact that Cleo forgave them both was very mature but didn’t address that Cleo’s favourite teacher was her only support system at school for a time. And, now Cleo has to live with the fact that her favourite teacher had an emotional affair with her beloved father? It’s incredibly selfish on both her father and her teacher’s part.
Also, her father’s explanation (how Cleo’s mother was so lost in grief that he felt ignored) was just so dumb. It came across as very real but was also the epitome of taking the easy way out: instead of talking to your wife and telling her how you’re feeling, you decide to have an affair. It created this idea that to be a successful businesswoman (which Cleo’s mother is), you cannot have a successful marriage or home life (Cleo’s relationship with her mother is very strained).
Despite how angsty and heartbreaking much of When You Were Everything was, it was a very cathartic reading experience. The reason I so enjoy YA books is that they have such great coming of age and character development arcs. Cleo’s journey was incredibly relatable, and despite the bitterness of a broken friendship, there was still so much hope for a better future.
Buy When You Were Everything
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