Loved this book from start to finish! Character development for the main characters was very well done and you can’t help but love Faye. I enjoyed her interaction with Francie, Reese and most especially with Jesse. A very unique friendship there. I disliked Sue & Bud from the start and knew there was something “off” about them. This book was very well written and I really enjoyed the story.

Disclaimer: I was given a free advance copy from NetGalley in return for my honest review.

I'm not quite sure what this book was trying to be - a coming of age story, a thriller, a sports story, a feminist call to arms with a side of historical fiction. There is something for everybody. I liked the true story of the first females running the Boston marathon as inspiration for our heroine in this book. Faye is a likeable character who you want to have a better life.

I went into this story knowing nothing about the plot. I was intrigued at every turn and thought that Diane Byington wrote a layered and beautifully heartbreaking story of a 16 year old girl with a point of view during a tumultuous time for women and minorities in American history.

Faye knew who she was and want she wanted in life, even if in the end everything she knew was wrong. She was determined, strong, smart and resourceful. As a mother I hope that my daughter will possess many of the characteristics that Faye has. It was refreshing reading a story about a young woman with such determination that nothing would get in her way of accomplishing her goals. I highly recommend this book and think it would be a great addition to any high school curriculum reading list. It contains many important talking points such as women's rights, racism, and abusive relationships in the home that are still valid even though this book is set 50 years ago.

Who She Is by Diane Byington subtly twists two stories around one main character, Faye Smith, a sixteen-year-old long distance runner. First there is the story of Faye’s training to run the Boston marathon as an attempt to scape her migrant farm worker background. Second is the underlying story of Faye trying to discover who she is. She has flashbacks and nightmares and can’t figure out what triggers them.

I enjoyed the feminist aspects of this novel with Faye and her best friend training for the Boston marathon at a time when running was considered bad for women’s internal organs. Faye is a determined, strong young woman.

I also liked the glimpses into the Civil Rights movement in the 1960’s. The coach training Faye and her best friend, Francine, is an African American black male. In addition, there was a brief glimpse of the Vietnam War as Francine’s brother joins the Marines and goes to Vietnam.

Though there were many things to like about this novel, I found the depth of emotion simply wasn’t there. Faye had remarkably little reaction to learning her past and to starting a new future with a different family.

Who She Is by Diane Byington is a great story about a young teenage girl named Faye that has had her fair share of moves in her life. Moving from place to place means school to school. In the 60’s it was even harder to Deal with the issues of race and where a girls place should be. Her parents were not very nice and the writer made it east to root for Faye and hope that something good was going to happen soon. I love this story and it was very easy to read and read at a fast paced should you choose to. The emotional aspect of this story will make you cry, laugh, and then get angry. All within a few seconds. The big question that needs answered is was Faye’s parents lying to her? You need to read it to find out. What you think is real may not be. Hold on to your seat, this is gonna be a bumpy ride.


Thank you to netgalley as well as the author/publisher for giving me the opportunity to read this book in exchange for my honest review.


5 🌟 out to f 5

This story takes place during the 1960's. It's a tumultuous time. It's a time of harrassment between the blacks and whites. It's a time when Martin Luther King Jr. Is assassinated.
Faye is fifteen going on sixteen. She has been the new girl is a bunch of schools. Her parents travel from town to town, state to state looking for work. Her father works in orchards and fields. Both of her parents are rather harsh. Her only outlet is running and her parents disapprove of this. She will soon face major decisions and discover surprising things about her life.
The characters are remarkable. The storyline is full of twists and turns. You are definitely kept guessing what will happen next.
I was given this book to read and review. These are my thoughts about this book. Strongly recommend!

I started this book yesterday and once I got into it, I couldn't put it down until I'd finished--very early this morning. Then I stayed up even longer thinking about it. Faye is a young woman in 1967, trying to plot a future for herself while unraveling the sticky and possibly dangerous threads of her past, which come to her as vague memories, or "spells" as she calls them. Through running she finds a sense of independence and strength that I could only hope would be enough to overcome the obstacles that Ms. Byington reveals slowly and mysteriously throughout the story. In fact these threads are so deftly woven into the story I hesitate to mention any details for fear of revealing too much. Just read it!

Who she is⭐️

She is just an average basketball loving, volleyball hating, running loving new kid trying to figure out who she is in this stupid world of high school. All she wants to do is run but her parents want her to go to school come home and repeat the cycle but she wants to run. Running causes her to have epilepsy episodes but she doesnt care her parents care more about her health then she does or so it seems.

The writing was very simple and easy to read.


Thank you so much to red adept via netgalley for sending me an ARC copy of who she is by Diana Byington. This will be released on march 20, 2018
All opinions are my own.

Faye has to move schools again, she is used to moving around a lot but it doesn’t mean she is happy.

Faye makes friends with Francie and they plan to train for the Boston Marathon, but Faye’s parents ban her from competing as they worry it will make her Epilepsy worse. Faye is undeterred and will do anything to run the Marathon.

Faye keeps having nightmares about being in a dark place and can remember living in a different house where she was looked after by another lady. But is this due to her Epilepsy or are her parents lying to her. Faye is determined to find out the truth.

This book was so interesting, I loved the historical elements, imagine women not being able to officially run the Boston Marathon until 1972, but then it got me thinking even in the 21st century we are still fighting for women’s equality. Now we are fighting for equal pay in the workforce.

I would definitely recommend this book, you can’t help but love Faye as she is so brave and strong and reminds me that if you put you’re mind to it you can conquer most things in life!!

Diane Byington you had me gripped from the start, desperate to find out if Faye gets to find out the truth and has her happy ending after all!! Please don’t make me wait too long for you’re next book.

Thank you to Netgalley for my copy on exchange for a review.