Throughout high school, I lived off reading Sarah Dessen's novels. If I'm completely honest I think I read Just Listen at least five times, and not once did it get old! Now as a college student her books aren't "technically" geared towards my age bracket but I still find myself in love with her writing. Not to mention that in so many of her characters I see myself.

Now, if you've never read any of Sarah Dessen's books before I'll find it within myself to forgive you but just know whether you're 13 or 23 her words can perfectly embody any emotion you're feeling at any particular moment. So for all the college students out there unable to figure out the right words to say to encompass all that you're feeling, there's a good chance one o these quotes from Sarah Dessen's books does the trick.

1. "If this was my forever I wouldn't wanna spend it here" -The Truth About Forever

It may be said that college is the best four years of your life, but it's only four years for a reason.

2. "Home wasn't a set house, or a single town on a map. It was wherever the people who loved you were, whenever you were together. Not a place, but a moment, and then another, building on each other like bricks to create a solid shelter that you take with you for your entire life, wherever you may go." -What Happened to Goodbye

Sometimes in college you're lucky enough to find people who love you enough to go through this crazy life with you no matter what it has in store for you. Cherish these people, they're your people.

3. "My point is, there are a lot of people in the world. No one ever sees everything the same way you do; it just doesn't happen. So when you find one person who gets a couple of things, especially if they're important ones... you might as well hold on to them. You know?" -Lock and Key

You may not agree on every aspect with every single one of your friends, but it's the parts of life where your beliefs and values overlap where you find the people you will spend majority of your time with.

4. "Not everything's perfect, especially in the beginning. And its all right to have a little bit of regret every once in a while. It's when you feel it all the time and can't do anything about it... that's when you get into trouble -Lock and Key"

It's ok to mess up and have to ask for help! That means we're human and that while life may not be perfect there are times when our regrets lead us to something worthwhile.

5. "She fell, she hurt, she felt. She lived. And for all the tumble of her experiences, she still had hope. Maybe this next time would do the trick. Or maybe not. But unless you stepped into the game, you would never know." -This Lullaby

College is about making mistakes and learning how to rise up out of the ashes to make a name for yourself.

6. "For once, you believed in yourself. You believed you were beautiful and so did the rest of the world." -Keeping the Moon

As the saying goes, confidence is key, but that's especially true on a college campus. No you may not be the smartest or prettiest in the room at all times, but believe in yourself and your own potential and you'll go places.

7. "So maybe it wasn't the fairy tale. But those stories weren't real anyway. Mine were." -Along For the Ride

Happily ever after is an achievement Disney taught us all to reach for, but college changes the script and shows us that there's more stories than ones that end with "happily ever after". Those other stories, those are the real stories.

8. "It was amazing how you could get so far from where you'd planned, and yet find it was exactly were you needed to be." -What Happened to Goodbye

They say college students change their mind daily, or at least once or twice in their four years. Sometimes it's nice to look back on those changes and see where they ended up leading us. Sometimes we realize we actually ended up better off in the long run.

9. "The choices you make now, the people you surround yourself with, they all have the potential to affect your life, even who you are, forever." -The Truth About Forever

You meet hundreds of people during your time at college, and you make hundreds of decisions on a daily basis. At the time we don't think they could ever bring us any harm but slowly they seem to shape and form who we are and what our future holds.

10. "But it was okay not to fit in everywhere, as long as you did somewhere." -The Truth About Forever

College is all about finding your niche, or at least the place you can call your home away from home.

11. "I can say I made a lot of mistakes, but I don't regret things. Because at least I didn't spend a life standing outside, wondering what living would be like." -This Lullaby

You could spend hundreds of hours in the library and have a perfect 4.0 GPA but have never lived in college. Go out and experience all that these four years have to offer.

12. "It's so easy to get caught up in what people expect of you. Sometimes, you can just lose yourself." -Dreamland

Expectations sometimes feel like death to a college student. We are expected to spend hours upon hours studying for classes that we don't care about to get a degree that more than likely won't get us a job in the future. Screw expectations and letting them define who I am.

13. "It was unrealistic to expect to be constantly in the happiest place. In real life, you're lucky just to be always somewhere nearby." -Saint Anything

It's that place where you can get away from the stress of school life, internships, and sometimes even friends. It's the quiet and still of a sunrise or sunset. It's the place you could get lost forever. Every college student has one even if they hardly ever get to spend time there.

14. "It's about the courage to go for what you want, not just what you think you need. Sometimes we don't even know what that is." -Once and For All

College is about finding out who we are and what we want in life. Take risks and never look back.

15. "Everyone’s life shapes them in their own unique way." -Once and For All

We are all uniquely different but what we share is that our lives have shaped us into the people we are today.

16. "Life is long. Just because you don't get your chance right when you want or expect it doesn't mean it won't come. Fate doesn't punch a time clock or consult a schedule." -The Moon and More

Sometimes the "wait" response is harder to handle than the "no" response. But in time, especially in college, you see that the "wait" turns into the best "yes" you'll ever see.

17. "The mistakes you make now count. Not for everything, and not forever. But they do matter, and they shape you.If you take nothing else from what I've been through, at least remember this: make your choices well. Because you'll always be accountable for them. That's what being an adult is all about." -The Moon and More

Make mistakes. Learn from them. Grow from them. Don't let them define who you are at the end of the day.

18. "If you have just one person believe in you, you'll always find your way." -Someone Like You.

This world is a horrible place to not have people around you that love and support you unconditionally. It's a lifesaver to have them around when college life gets you down or feeling like you just can't take the stress anymore.

At the end of the day, it doesn't matter if a book is geared towards a 10-year-old or a 95-year-old, in almost every book you read there's at least one quote or idea that sticks with you. Sarah Dessen's books are living proof of that. If these quotes aren't enough to prove it to you go on out and take a few days to curl up with a couple of Sarah Dessen's books. I promise you they'll be able to speak more truth into your life than you'll ever imagine.