You Know You Love Me is the second book of the Gossip Girl series. In this installment,
Blair Waldorf celebrates her seventeenth birthday, deals with her mother’s
second wedding, and has an early admissions interview at Yale.

You Know You Love Me by Cecily Von
Ziegesar is set on the Upper East Side of New York City. The school
year is progressing for the students of the exclusive Constance Billard School
for Girls and its counterpart the equally exclusive St. Jude’s School for Boys.
Rich and popular Blair Waldorf has her china plate filled to the brim with
trouble and that is saying a lot for an anorexic! First, Eleanor Waldorf,
Blair’s mother, has announced that she is getting remarried. Not only is she
marrying the very uncouth Cyrus Rose but the wedding is scheduled to take place
on Blair’s seventeenth birthday. Adding insult to injury, her mother has
obviously forgotten about Blair’s plans to have the birthday party to end all
birthday parties, has no only asked Blair to be her maid-of-honor but has asked
Serena van der Woodsen, her former best friend and current worst enemy, to be a
bridesmaid. Blair’s dream of a picture perfect deflowering on her seventeenth
birthday is quickly fading. Nate Archibald, Blair’s boyfriend is also growing
more distant by the minute. Unbeknownst to Blair Nate, finally fed up with Blair’s
"yes-I-will-oops-sorry-no-I-won’t" sexual game playing, has sent him
into the arms of chesty freshman, Jenny Humphrey. Prior to the wedding,
however, the in-crowd are off to early admissions interviews at the Ivy League
colleges of their choices. Blair and
Aaron Rose, her soon-to-be stepbrother, are off to Yale and Serena, Nate, and
Dan Humphrey, Jenny’s older brother who is more than just a little in love with
Serena, are off to Brown. While the parents await the outcomes of the
interviews, the readers find out immediately about the real scoop of what went
down the night before in the hotels. As the big day approaches – Blair’s
birthday, of course – the bridal party is pampered, primped, and corseted.
Meanwhile Blair and her friends are planning for some scandalous activities.
Let’s just say it involves horny Chuck Bass’ hot tub.

You Know You Love Me gives
wonderful insight into the family life of the novel’s in-crowd. When the
shallow self-centeredness
of the parents is viewed in all empty hollowness, there is little doubt about
where their teenagers learned their behavior. Can a mother really forget her
only child’s birthday? Or be so self-centered as to not be willing to change
the date? This novel was never intended to be a parenting guide for children
with silver spoon-itis. It is intended to be a humorous peak into the selfish
indulgence tendencies of the rich and shameless.

Who is Cecily Von
Ziegesar? Here’s the scoop! She attended Colby College, lived in
Budapest for a year, studied creative writing at the University
of Arizona, there she met and married a "dashing Englishman", moved
to London, and now lives
in Manhattan. She is the mother of eight-month old Agnes. She has an active
social life that includes society parties and fundraisers. The third volume of
the Gossip Girl series, All I Want Is Everything will be release in May 2003.

You Know You Love Me by Cecily Von
Ziegesar follows closely on the events of Gossip Girl (Book I) and relies heavily upon the relationship built
therein. If you liked Book I, then you will love Book II. The gossip is even
juicier. Again, parents should be pre-warned that this book is
filled with copious drugs, alcohol, and casual sex, albeit not graphically
described. Books are recommended for ages 15 and up.

© 2003 Su Terry

Su Terry: Education:
B.A. in History from Sacred Heart University, M.L.S. in Library Science from
Southern Connecticut State College, M.R.S. in Religious Studies/Pastoral
Counseling from Fairfield University, a M.Div. in Professional Ministry from
New Brunswick Theological Seminary, a Certificate in Spirituality/Spiritual
Direction from Sacred Heart University. She is a Licensed Minister of the
United Church of Christ and an Assistant Professor in Library Science at
Dowling College, Long Island, NY. Interests in Mental Health: She is interested
in the interplay between psychology, biology, and mysticism. Her current area
of research is in the impact of hormonal fluctuation in female Christian
mystics.

Categories: Children