Review: The Moon and More by Sarah Dessen

SUMMARY FROM GOODREADS:

Luke is the perfect boyfriend: handsome, kind, fun. He and Emaline have been together all through high school in Colby, the beach town where they both grew up. But now, in the summer before college, Emaline wonders if perfect is good enough.
Enter Theo, a super-ambitious outsider, a New Yorker assisting on a documentary film about a reclusive local artist. Theo's sophisticated, exciting, and, best of all, he thinks Emaline is much too smart for Colby.
Emaline's mostly-absentee father, too, thinks Emaline should have a bigger life, and he's convinced that an Ivy League education is the only route to realizing her potential. Emaline is attracted to the bright future that Theo and her father promise. But she also clings to the deep roots of her loving mother, stepfather, and sisters. Can she ignore the pull of the happily familiar world of Colby?
Emaline wants the moon and more, but how can she balance where she comes from with where she's going?
Sarah Dessen's devoted fans will welcome this story of romance, yearning, and, finally, empowerment. It could only happen in the summer.

MY TAKE:
I've been meaning to read this book for a while now, but didn't get around to it until recently.

In The Moon and More, it's Emaline's last summer at Colby before college starts. At first, her plans were already set, with her and her boyfriend Luke both going to East U. However, the summer's only starting and it still hold a lot of possibilities.

I'd rate this book as somewhere in the middle of the Sarah Dessen books pack. It doesn't have the magic and raw emotions of Just Listen and The Truth About Forever, but it certainly entertained me more than Dreamland and That Summer. The Moon and More does have the usual mix of interesting secondary characters, more than half of which I'd like to know personally. It also has some very poignant observations by the lead character, which is something I've really come to like about Sarah Dessen's books.

During the first half or 3/4th of this book, my thoughts about the love triangle were more along the lines of "What is this?!" and "Emaline should really consider staying single." Luke came across as sweet but vain and proud. Theo, on the other hand, was geeky, enthusiastic to the point of being annoying, and pretentious. I was all set to give this book three stars if it weren't for the ending which I found satisfying, in its own way, and Emaline's relationship with her half-brother.

As for Emaline, she is in the bottom half of my Sarah Dessen girls list. She's more memorable to me than some of the other girls, but not as memorable as Annabel and Macy. She was kind of immature at times, and she has a tendency not to say what's really on her mind. I did like her bond with her half-brother, though. It's sweet and nice, and it added more depth to the story.

THE GOOD:

1. It ends on a hopeful note.
2. It shows what it's like from a local's point-of-view when out-of-towners come into their place.
3. The romances might not turn out like you expected. 

THE BAD:

1.  This isn't as amazing as Sarah Dessen's books Just Listen and The Truth About Forever.

FAVORITE QUOTE/S:

The truth was, there was no way everything could be the Best. Sometimes, when it came to events and people, it had to be okay to just be. 

READ IT IF:

1. You live in a small town.
2. You have big dreams.
3. You hate feeling like people are trying to control you and that they know better than you. 

RATING:


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