You Between the Lines

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You Between the Lines is the debut novel by Katie Naymon. Her biography shares many details with her main character, Leigh Simon. That’s probably why the book feels so grounded in details.

Leigh is an only child who loves to write but hates the pretentious people who laud the classics – mainly white, straight literary men. She once loved writing unique, pop-culture poetry, but her high school crush called her classwork “all-style-no-substance.” In front of her entire high school creative writing class, Will asked, “What’s going on between the lines here?” It’s a lovely way to tie the title of the book into the text, and it’s nice to see this at the beginning of a book instead of near the end.

So instead of pursuing creative writing, Leigh became a mid-level copywriter for an advertising agency, which she bemoaned as a creativity killer. When her parents announced their separation, processed her emotions by writing poetry. She also begins therapy. She’s a people-pleaser and needs praise to build up her confidence. So when her first submission is published in Goldfinch Review, she takes a chance and applies for a prestigious MFA program. The acceptance letter gives Leigh hope that she can fall in love with writing again.

Only five fiction writers and five poets are accepted into the two-year program, and one of her new classmates is none other than her is her high school crush – the man who destroyed her confidence, and in her eyes, rejected her with his criticism. As with every time they’re in the same space, Leigh is drawn to William Langston. He’s the smart, well-dressed kind of man she’s always been drawn to. Unfortunately, her sorority girl attitude and love of pop culture inevitably make her feel inadequate and the types of guys she likes always move on without her. So when Will admits he’s attracted to her – with a poem read in class that leaves her overwhelmed with confusion and attraction – Leigh knows they’ll never last as a couple.

You Between the Lines has a lovely thread of sexual tension; it’s a beautiful dance of push and pull as both Leigh and Will try to fight their attraction. Hot one minute, cold the next, their relationship is complicated and engaging.

As for the audiobook, Sarah Beth Goer did an excellent job as narrator. Her voice is exactly what I’d picture for Leigh. I don’t normally like music at the beginning of an audiobook, but the melodies at the beginning and end of You Between the Lines were a lovely touch.

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