Karen McManus’s critical literacy book, One of Us is Lying, focuses on four high school students who witnessed a murder in a detention room. The students are all accused of killing Simon, a student that had a gossip app. No one knows who actually committed the crime. The four become really good friends and each are faced with many problems but they all help one another and get through their troubles. It’s important to never forget that if the rope ever comes to an end, hang on. In the beginning, the book describes that if things seem to end on a negative note, you haven’t tried hard enough. Bronwyn was so shocked and terrified when she found out that Nate got arrested for allegedly killing Simon. Bronwyn knew that this news was completely wrong and she needed to do something but it felt like the end for her. She knew she couldn’t give up so she decided to keep going and find out the real answer. McManus states, “They’re wrong. I’m positive they’re wrong.” These sentences show how she felt like giving up, but she knew she couldn’t, …show more content…
Addy was the one who found the killer, but during the process she got extremely hurt, getting chased, slammed onto the ground, and choked extremely hard. McManus describes, “Instead he shoves me to the ground, kneels down, and slams my head on a rock. My skull explodes with pain and my vision goes red around the edges, then black. Something presses across my neck and I’m choking. I can’t see anything, but I can hear. “You should be in jail instead of Nate, Addy,” Jake snarls as I claw at his hands. “But this works too.” Addy got put in the hospital and ended up making a full recovery. People thought that Addy was extremely injured and some people thought she could’ve died. This scene shows how injured and helpless Addy was. She persevered, helping her survive and make a full recovery with no long term damage. In other words, if you don’t give up, it’ll help you in the long