The Rest of the Story

What would summer be like without spending at least part of it in the world of Sarah Dessen? This time we are on the lake, reconnecting with family. And the family has part of the story that Emma Saylor doesn’t remember. She hasn’t seen her mom’s side since she was little and when complications arise with her summer plans, she finds herself at her grandmother’s hotel on the lake. The poor side of the lake. This is where her parents met, where their story started and where her mother’s troubles began. As Saylor discovers the family she didn’t know she was missing, she begins to fill in her story. She has help from her cousins, aunts and grandparents. And Roo. Roo is the boy in the pictures of Saylor when she was young. Roo is the son of her mother’s best friend. Roo is the boy who will become something more to her by the end of the summer. Saylor has to battle her father and his notions about the lake and her relatives as he struggles to let go and trust Saylor. She has to prove that she is not her mother and can embrace her new family without letting go of the old one. I didn’t cry as much as I expected to- which is a good thing. I want to spend a summer in one of Sarah Dessen’s settings, small towns where everyone knows everyone and the days are long and filled with memories. For now, I’ll have to settle for reading about them. Happy reading my friends!