The Moon and More- Sarah Dessen
I'm a huge Sarah Dessen. I have a signed copy of her book Along for The Ride because I met her person at a book signing a few years ago. She seems like a truly humble and beautiful person. So when I heard she had a new book, I ordered it immediately because I was dying to read it.
The Moon and More is a lovely summer read. The main character, Emline, has just finished highschool is spending the summer in a small beach town named cobly. On the surface, her life seems perfect. She is spending her entire summer at the beach, she has the perfect boyfriend, and the perfect family.
***Spoilers**: The reader soon finds out that Emline's life isn't as perfect as it seems. Her estrangled father never apologizes for backing out on his promise to pay for Emline's college. Emline ends up turning down Columbia college and decides to go to a small college.
Her perfect boyfriend, Luke, has a slight indiscretion and they end up breaking up. Three hours after they break up, she ends up kissing Theo. It's a little unrealistic that Emline ends up kissing Theo hours after her breakup. She's just ended a five year relationship and she doesn't really take a chance to grieve that relationship. It just seems unlikely her character to pull such a drastic move.
Theo is a quirky guy who is filming a doctumentary about a local artist. Theo hasn't had much experience when it comes to girls but his innocence is charming. Most people will find Theo annoying and I personally adore Theo. Luke may be gorgeous and charming but he wasn't trusthworthy. Theo goes out of his way to plan romantic dates for Emline.
At the end of novel, Emline goes off to college. To the reader's surprise, she doesn't choose either of the guys. I think readers would be more dissapointed with this choice if Theo was more likeable or as handsome as Luke. I think Sarah Dessen made a male character that doesn't appeal to the majority of readers, so readers would be dissappointed with Emline's choice.
****End of spoiler**
How many stars would I give this novel? three and a half stars.
Would I reccommend it to a friend? I would recommed it for a light summer read.
Would I buy this writer's work again? Yes, absolutely. Personally this wasn't my favorite Sarah Dessen Novel. I would read Lock & Key or Just Listen before this novel.
My favorite character was Emline and my least favorite characters were Emline's dad and her first boyfriend. Her dad never apologies his mistake and he's punishing himself for his mistake BUT he never says "I'm sorry" to his daughter. And Luke is just your typical guy who isn't interested in having a long term relationship anymore.
The most clever thing about the story is how well the title of the book ties into the theme of the story. Emline's mother is always telling her daughter you can have the moon and more.
Sarah Dessen:
Sarah Dessen grew up in Chapel Hill, North Carolina and attended UNC-Chapel Hill, graduating with highest honors in Creative Writing. She is the author of several novels, including Someone Like You,Just Listen and Along for the Ride. A motion picture based on her first two books, entitled How to Deal, was released in 2003. Her eleventh novel,The Moon and More, will be published in June 2013. She lives in North Carolina.
The Moon and More is 8.99 on kindle or fifteen dollars for paperback (I think).
Also, the best traditonal book I've read this year was a tie between this one and Delirium by Lauren Oliver. Delirium is kind of a disutopia romance, so I wasn't sure if you guys would like that as much! But, I was really captivated by her book.
Up next, Fallen by Lauren Kate VS. Shadowland by Alsyon Noel. I'm doing a comparison review because both novels have their differences but they have similiar theme. And I had the same problem with both novels.
:) Let me know if you have any reading suggestions! Thanks for reading!
