--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Make no mistake, adolescence is a war. No…" description: "\"Make no mistake, adolescence is a war. No one gets out unscathed.\" — Harlan Coben" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/44a/harlan-coben-847_adolescence_make-no-mistake-adolescence-is-a-war-no_908931.png" --- # Make no mistake, adolescence is a war. No one gets out… ![“Make no mistake, adolescence is a war. No one gets out unscathed.” quote by Harlan Coben](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/44a/harlan-coben-847_adolescence_make-no-mistake-adolescence-is-a-war-no_908931.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/44a/harlan-coben-847_adolescence_make-no-mistake-adolescence-is-a-war-no_908931.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/44a/harlan-coben-847_adolescence_make-no-mistake-adolescence-is-a-war-no_908931.png) > “Make no mistake, adolescence is a war. No one gets out unscathed.” [Harlan Coben](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harlan-coben/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Describes adolescence as a painful, unavoidable battle that leaves lasting scars. **In simple terms:** Teen years are a tough battle. Key Takeaway Prepare for emotional challenges. Themes adolescence conflict growth Mood somber empathetic Type observational advice When to use this quote - school life - family relationships - mental health counseling Key Concepts psychology developmental trauma Questions to Reflect On - How can we support teens during this “war”? - What coping strategies help heal lasting scars? A Different Perspective May generalize all teen experiences. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Adolescence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/adolescence/) [Adolescence War](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/adolescence-war-1314300/) [Failure](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/failure/) [Gets](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/gets/) [Make](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/make/) [Make no mistake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/make-no-mistake/) [Mistake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mistake/) [Mistake Adolescence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mistake-adolescence-1314301/) [Out](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/out/) [Unscathed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/unscathed/) [War](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/war/) [War Gets](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/war-gets-1314302/) [Youth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/youth/) ## Related quotes > [“It’s too bad war gets all the attention; it’s too bad the plant is easier to see than the root.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cameron-conaway/it-s-too-bad-war-gets-all-the-attention-it-s-too-bad-the-plant-is/) [Cameron Conaway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cameron-conaway/) > [“Can’t stand war. Gets in the way of order and process and all the good things”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shannon-hale/can-t-stand-war-gets-in-the-way-of-order-and-process-and-all-the-good/) [Shannon Hale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shannon-hale/) > [Mainstream news covers war and gets everything wrong. I'd rather learn what's happening from soldiers with combat experience. It's like a former NFL player…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brandon-webb/mainstream-news-covers-war-and-gets-everything-wrong-i-d-rather-learn/) [Brandon Webb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brandon-webb/) > [Make no mistake: I will work with both Democrats and Republicans to cut wasteful spending and reduce our debt in a balanced, responsible way.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ann-mclane-kuster/make-no-mistake-i-will-work-with-both-democrats-and-republicans-to/) [Ann McLane Kuster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ann-mclane-kuster/) > [And I do - make no mistake, I am a Christian and I believe in God, and I don't believe he makes mistakes. So…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kristin-chenoweth/and-i-do-make-no-mistake-i-am-a-christian-and-i-believe-in-god-and-i/) [Kristin Chenoweth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kristin-chenoweth/) > [Make no mistake, if the payroll-tax cut is extended, it will become permanent. Social Security will become another welfare program as the tie between…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ari-fleischer/make-no-mistake-if-the-payroll-tax-cut-is-extended-it-will-become/) [Ari Fleischer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ari-fleischer/) > [Make no mistake, a 'yes' vote on the Democrats' health care bill is a vote for taxpayer-funded abortions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-boehner/make-no-mistake-a-yes-vote-on-the-democrats-health-care-bill-is-a/) [John Boehner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-boehner/) > [You never see a child die from education on TV. But make no mistake about it: children die from lack of education all the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gene-sperling/you-never-see-a-child-die-from-education-on-tv-but-make-no-mistake/) [Gene Sperling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gene-sperling/) > [Make no mistake about it, my friends - Republicans, the American people are never going to forget that it was you who shut down…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-scott/make-no-mistake-about-it-my-friends-republicans-the-american-people/) [David Scott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-scott/) > [Make no mistake about it: Next to parents and families, our teachers are the most important influence in our children's lives.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenny-guinn/make-no-mistake-about-it-next-to-parents-and-families-our-teachers-2/) [Kenny Guinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenny-guinn/) > [For the naysayers that claimed 'American Family' revealed us to be vacant, unloving, uncaring morons of the materialistic '70s, this image will be proven…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lance-loud/for-the-naysayers-that-claimed-american-family-revealed-us-to-be/) [Lance Loud](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lance-loud/) > [Make no mistake: Obamacare is a pro-death 'health' program.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kesha-rogers/make-no-mistake-obamacare-is-a-pro-death-health-program/) [Kesha Rogers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kesha-rogers/) > [Pretty much from 1979 through 1988, the backbone of my career was the theater. Working on Broadway a couple of times, working off-Broadway, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/delroy-lindo/pretty-much-from-1979-through-1988-the-backbone-of-my-career-was-the/) [Delroy Lindo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/delroy-lindo/) > [Make no mistake, our troops will be in Afghanistan and Iraq for a long time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerry-costello/make-no-mistake-our-troops-will-be-in-afghanistan-and-iraq-for-a-long/) [Jerry Costello](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerry-costello/) > [We did it. Make no mistake: We have written history. Today there's a change of guards in Denmark.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/helle-thorning-schmidt/we-did-it-make-no-mistake-we-have-written-history-today-there-s-a/) [Helle Thorning-Schmidt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/helle-thorning-schmidt/) ## More by Harlan Coben > [“He flipped through the music stations as he drove, searching for some nonexistent perfect song that would be, as Stevie Nicks might sing, “hauntingly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harlan-coben/he-flipped-through-the-music-stations-as-he-drove-searching-for-some/) [Harlan Coben](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harlan-coben/) > [“The whole place had a feel and aura about as warm as a cold sore.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harlan-coben/the-whole-place-had-a-feel-and-aura-about-as-warm-as-a-cold-sore/) [Harlan Coben](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harlan-coben/) > [When I was seventeen, I worked as a counsellor at a co-ed sleep-away camp for eight weeks. I loved it but it could be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harlan-coben/when-i-was-seventeen-i-worked-as-a-counsellor-at-a-co-ed-sleep-away/) [Harlan Coben](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harlan-coben/) > [Man plans. God laughs.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harlan-coben/man-plans-god-laughs/) [Harlan Coben](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harlan-coben/) > [“You could trust nature but not man.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harlan-coben/you-could-trust-nature-but-not-man/) [Harlan Coben](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harlan-coben/) > [I like to see the difference between good and evil as kind of like the foul line at a baseball game. It's very thin,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harlan-coben/i-like-to-see-the-difference-between-good-and-evil-as-kind-of-like/) [Harlan Coben](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harlan-coben/) > [The state of New Jersey is really two places - terrible cities and wonderful suburbs. I live in the suburbs, the final battleground of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harlan-coben/the-state-of-new-jersey-is-really-two-places-terrible-cities-and/) [Harlan Coben](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harlan-coben/) > [“Esperanza's side had so many colors, Crayola sent a scout.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harlan-coben/esperanza-s-side-had-so-many-colors-crayola-sent-a-scout/) [Harlan Coben](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harlan-coben/) > [You know, people call mystery novels or thrillers 'puzzles.' I never understood that, because when I buy a puzzle, I already know what it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harlan-coben/you-know-people-call-mystery-novels-or-thrillers-puzzles-i-never/) [Harlan Coben](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harlan-coben/) > [“Awareness started to creep in, clawing its way past the pain and numbness. He was lying on cold ground, his right cheek on a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harlan-coben/awareness-started-to-creep-in-clawing-its-way-past-the-pain-and/) [Harlan Coben](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harlan-coben/) > [“Her smile shames the sun”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harlan-coben/her-smile-shames-the-sun/) [Harlan Coben](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harlan-coben/) > [This is the price you pay for having a great father. You get the wonder, the joy, the tender moments - and you get…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harlan-coben/this-is-the-price-you-pay-for-having-a-great-father-you-get-the/) [Harlan Coben](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harlan-coben/) > [“The words kept landing like punches, dazing Adam, sapping his resistance, leaving him shaken and confused and ready to take a standing eight count.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harlan-coben/the-words-kept-landing-like-punches-dazing-adam-sapping-his/) [Harlan Coben](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harlan-coben/) > [I'm not very happy idle.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harlan-coben/i-m-not-very-happy-idle/) [Harlan Coben](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harlan-coben/) > [“Making friends?” Tripp asked. “I’m a people person,” Adam said. “You know he’s the VP of the board, right?” “I must remember to genuflect…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harlan-coben/making-friends-tripp-asked-i-m-a-people-person-adam-said-you-know-he/) [Harlan Coben](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harlan-coben/) [Explore all 351 Harlan Coben quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harlan-coben/) ## More Adolescence quotes > [They must move from a psychological state of victimization to a psychological state of accepting responsibility. The Palestinians must leave behind their revolutionary adolescence…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ari-shavit/they-must-move-from-a-psychological-state-of-victimization-to-a/) [Ari Shavit](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ari-shavit/) > [Having children truly ends adolescence. We are all either parents or children: responsibility-takers or those who demand from others.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-shapiro/having-children-truly-ends-adolescence-we-are-all-either-parents-or/) [Ben Shapiro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-shapiro/) > [Teenage girls are extremists who see the world in black-and- white terms, missing shades of gray. Life is either marvelous or notworth living. School…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-pipher/teenage-girls-are-extremists-who-see-the-world-in-black-and-white/) [Mary Pipher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-pipher/) > [Teenagers complain there's nothing to do, then stay out all night doing it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-phillips/teenagers-complain-there-s-nothing-to-do-then-stay-out-all-night/) [Bob Phillips](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-phillips/) > [The idols of one's adolescence tend to endure - you never forget how you worshipped them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/molly-ivins/the-idols-of-one-s-adolescence-tend-to-endure-you-never-forget-how/) [Molly Ivins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/molly-ivins/) > [Being an adult is the ability to postpone a want for the sake of a family need.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-hogan/being-an-adult-is-the-ability-to-postpone-a-want-for-the-sake-of-a/) [Chris Hogan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-hogan/) > [The donning of the ear buds marks the beginning of teen life, when children set off on their own for the passage through adolescence.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amity-shlaes/the-donning-of-the-ear-buds-marks-the-beginning-of-teen-life-when/) [Amity Shlaes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amity-shlaes/) > [Adolescence is when the very worst and best impulses in the human soul struggle against each other for possession.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/g-stanley-hall/adolescence-is-when-the-very-worst-and-best-impulses-in-the-human/) [G. Stanley Hall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/g-stanley-hall/) > [Most adults would not dream of belittling, humiliating, or bullying (verbally or physically) another adult. But many of the same adults think nothing of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurence-steinberg/most-adults-would-not-dream-of-belittling-humiliating-or-bullying/) [Laurence Steinberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurence-steinberg/) > [If you can't count, they can cheat you. If you can't read, they can beat you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toni-morrison/if-you-can-t-count-they-can-cheat-you-if-you-can-t-read-they-can-beat/) [Toni Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toni-morrison/) > [“He'd possessed all the key elements of a school shooter: hormones, misery, ammunition. People wondered how something like Columbine could happen. Jude wondered why…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-hill/he-d-possessed-all-the-key-elements-of-a-school-shooter-hormones/) [Joe Hill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-hill/) > [ I remember realizing, when I did Little Women \[1994\], that that was the only time girls that age were being written about. It was… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/winona-ryder/i-remember-realizing-when-i-did-little-women-1994-that-that-was-the/) [Winona Ryder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/winona-ryder/) > [Content without style is propaganda or adolescence. Style without content is decadence.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rita-mae-brown/content-without-style-is-propaganda-or-adolescence-style-without/) [Rita Mae Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rita-mae-brown/) > [Adolescence is interesting. I mean, all of life is interesting and all of life is transitionary. But I think there is an exponential growth…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-henson/adolescence-is-interesting-i-mean-all-of-life-is-interesting-and-all/) [Bill Henson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-henson/) > [“Yet GenX'er teens didn't slow down--they were just as likely to drive, drink alcohol, and date as their Boomer peers and more likely to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-m-twenge/yet-genx-er-teens-didn-t-slow-down-they-were-just-as-likely-to-drive/) [Jean M. Twenge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-m-twenge/) [Browse all 787 Adolescence quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/adolescence/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Make no mistake, adolescence is a war. 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