middle class families, living in pretty solid environments. I was intrigued by taking a girl who WASN'T like that at all and dropping her into this whole new world. I liked the idea that you'd think it would solve all her problems—having a roof over her head, money, a family—but that it actually brought up a whole other set to deal with. Also, I liked the idea of my narrator having to sort of "save" someone else in order to save herself." Another key theme was family. It started out with Ruby not knowing the true meaning of family, only thinking that it meant people related by blood or marriage. So in Ruby's mind, the only family she had was her mother and her sister. But by the end of the book, Ruby realized that family is not only relatives, it's everyone who takes care of you, anyone who you trust, anyone who loves you. The concept of the English project sprung from her want to "...focus on the idea of family, and I thought it would be an interesting way to get Ruby thinking about it without it seeming too forced. Plus I really liked the idea of how everyone would have different definitions for the word, and in giving them, they'd be sort of defining themselves, as well." The song, Angel of Montgomery, allowed Dessen to "...get down the character of Ruby's mom. There's a certain sadness, and tiredness, in that song, and the woman speaking in it, and it really reminded me of what I was trying to do with Ruby's mom. I often will have a song that brings to mind a character, or helps fill them out a bit." The interview went into further detail with questions regarding character choices and inspirations for themes. References 2008 American novels American young adult novels Viking Press books