The Moon and More by Sarah Dessen
4/5 stars
Viking, 2013
435 pages
YA Contemporary
Source: Received an ARC from publisher in exchange for an honest review.
I am a huge Sarah Dessen fan; I've read all of our books and thus was thrilled to receive an early copy of her latest release. With the gorgeous cover, I was expecting my usual Dessen comfort read. Could it live up to the impossibly high standards set by This Lullaby and The Truth About Forever? Probably not but it would still be good. I was right to predict that this would not be my favorite Dessen but for different reasons than I expected.
For me, I think my love of Dessen relates mostly to her amazing writing that builds fantastic characters, rich and complex yet realistic contemporary worlds, and sawoony romances (see Remy + Dex and Macy + Wes). Well those first two are present here but the last one is mostly missing. Although I had felt Dessen's novels were becoming a bit formulaic (especially noticeable to me in What Happened to Goodbye and the reason I thought I might not like this one), this change still didn't entirely please me. I don't want to spoil anything but you can email me to discuss :)
The book opens with Emaline in a relationship with Luke, possibly the hottest young guy in town. But as the summer before college progresses, Emaline finds herself drawn to something new, maybe something more with summer visitor Theo. Sounds very romantic, right? Well, that relationship never really flourishes like the two I previously mentioned as Emaline grapples with family tensions and with trying to figure out her own desires in comparison to how Theo plunges ahead. Her mother has always wanted "the moon and more" for her but what does that mean to Emaline?
As I said, the romance wasn't as dreamy as previous relationships in Dessen novels with Theo trying way too hard and Emaline tolerating his try. There were some awkward parts to me although I believe that was intentional on Dessen's part. On the family side, I wish we had gotten to know Emaline's older sisters a bit better (I'm thinking of the family dynamic in Just Listen especially) but at least we have her friends Morris and Daisy whose colorfulness certainly brightened my day.
Overall: For me, this book was mostly a victim of my expectations: I appreciate every Dessen book I get even though I don't always love them. I still think this is a great summer read and I definitely recommend it to fans of Dessen's previous novels as well as those looking for a great summer contemporary read.
Other Opinions:
Candace's Book Blog
Clear Eyes, Full Shelves
Jen Ryland/YA Romantics
The Midnight Garden
I am worried that I won't like this one! I have read other reviews that didn't care for the "romance" either. I will be reading it soon so we will see. I usually like Sarah Dessen's books but I definitely agree that some are better than the others.
ReplyDeleteIt's not that I didn't like it-it's that she's written better. It's probably still worth checking out if you like her writing.
DeleteWe're review twins! I liked that Dessen moved away from typical romance. She's brilliant at it, but she's done other things and it's nice to see her play with what's become her formula.
ReplyDeleteYay-review twins! I liked the change-up but I just have liked others more.
DeleteI think this sounds like a wonderful book and one I would enjoy. Emaline sounds like she goes through a lot. Great review.
ReplyDeleteJenea @ Books Live Forever
It's pretty good-any Sarah Dessen is still better than a lot of other stuff out there.
Deleteaww I hate it when that happens! But at least you found some good in it. I am ashamed to say I have yet to read her books, but I heard they are beautiful.
ReplyDeleteYes, you need to check out some of her writing! They're all good but I think THIS LULLABY and THE TRUTH ABOUT FOREVER are her best.
DeleteI agree on the romance angle--while I appreciate that her books aren't all about that, I think that what was here could definitely have been done better. Like you, I still enjoyed this, though! I just like her books in general, although certainly some are better than others.
ReplyDeleteWendy @ The Midnight Garden
yeah, if there's going to be romance, it needs to be better done instead of how frustrating it was here.
DeleteI can't wait to read this one! I too am a long time Dessen fan, and I also count This Lullaby and The Truth About Forever among my favorites! Though I think I prefer Just Listen to The Truth About Forever. Along for the Ride and What Happened to Goodbye just didn't seem to cut it for me though. I may give those another shot sometime soon. Thanks for the review!
ReplyDelete-Taylor @ Reading is the Thing
They're fine reads but some of her books just really hit home for me and make me so happy :)
DeleteI'm reading this one right now (halfway through), and I agree regarding the romance. I miss the swoonworthy boys! Thank goodness this book still has her Dessen charm, I'm loving the setting and side characters so far.
ReplyDeleteNice review :)
Excited for your review and what you think about everything!
DeleteYep, we are in a mind meld. While I liked the fact that Theo was kind of quirky and awkward, he was all wrong for Emaline -- he needs to meet Deb in What Happened To Goodbye. I never felt like I got a read on Luke at all.
ReplyDeleteAnd I agree -- more on Emaline's family would have been good. I loved the dynamic as all of them quarreled over their real estate business…
You can find me here: Jen @ YA Romantics
I liked Theo at the beginning but he annoyed me more as the book wore on. I loved the family-Dessen does good families and friendships.
DeleteDessen does family and friendships so well, I'm a fan too, although I've only read 4. My favourite being The Truth About Forever. Haven't read This Lullaby but I enjoyed Along for the Ride and Just Listen. Glad Dessen is still doing it for you despite a few issues :)
ReplyDeleteYou must read This Lullaby-seriously one of my favorite books of all time!
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