We Were Liars Chapter Summary

Medha Srungarapu
Ms. Hallford
English 9H P1
09 January 2023
Book Report: We Were Liars by E.L Lockhart
I Plot: C

In the book “We Were Liars” by E. Lockhart, the climax occurs when Cady realizes she burned down Clairmont. Being a part of the respected Sinclair family, Cady burns down Clairmont, a building on her grandfather’s private island as an act of rebelment. Two years later, Cady cannot remember what she did because the trauma of the event caused her to suffer a severe case of amnesia. She is told that she will remember what happened over time. As the memories come rushing back to her, she realizes, that trapped in the burning building, stood her two dogs and cousins. As Cady realizes her horrible act, she thinks to herself, “[t]he dogs.

She poetically writes “I used to be blond, but now my hair is black. I used to be strong, but now I am weak. I used to be pretty, but now I look sick.” (Lockhart 17). She goes on to explain that she owns nothing except a well-used library card. Readers begin to wonder what caused the sudden shift in Cady as a person. What makes her cold and reserved, and what causes her to keep to herself? The book continues, explaining how her father left her, and how her crush was dating someone else. After the Incident, she suffers from migraines for which she takes pain medication. Soon after, and becomes addicted and stays in a hazy state, out of touch with what is happening around her. Because of her many pills and sunken features, her younger cousins gossip about her being a drug addict. Cady, who used to be a bright girl, and captain of the tennis team, has changed into a quiet and miserable person. When Cady realizes what really happened two years ago, how she accidentally took so many lives with the fire, she spirals into a deep state of

In the title, the word ‘were’ is used in past tense because all of her cousins died in the fire. There is no exact reason for the title, but rather small hints Lockart gives her readers to make assumptions. All of Cady’s 3 cousins, Mirren, Gat, and Johnny were liars. The main reason they were called so was because when they were younger, they dragged mud all over the carpet and lied to their nanny. Their nanny called them the ‘Bad Liars’ because their excuses did not convince her. They were also considered liars because their parents made them lie to their grandfather in order to increase their trust fund. Mirren was a liar because she lied to Cady about having a boyfriend, and Cady often lied about taking her pills. Most importantly, though, their whole family lied. They lied about everything being fine, even though on the inside the Sinclairs were miserable. Cady recalls her mother snapping at her “[s]he said to get hold of myself. Be normal, now, she said. Right now, she said. Because you are. Because you can be.” immediately after her dad abandoned them. Finally, Cady is a liar because even after her cousins died, she continued telling herself they were still alive. She used her mind to imagine them and refused to believe they died. The lies in this beautiful family caused disorder in the once perfect synchrony of the