Along for the Ride by Sarah Dessen

Published by: Viking Juvenile

Pages: 395

Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/5664985-along-for-the-ride

I have read almost all of Sarah's books now, and I would have to say that this is one of my top 2 for me for sure! I loved all of the characters for what they brought to the story. I did not feel at any point that the story was dragging, or unrealistic in any way.

I really liked how Auden grew through the summer, but it was not a fast growth, it was small steps at a time, and it was nice. At the beginning she seemed way to concentrated on making other people happy in her life, and trying to be "perfect", that she missed out on most of the fundamental events that should happen in childhood and in the years following, that I almost felt sorry for her. Then she chose a leap of faith and decided to make a change for the summer, and it turned out to be the best choice for her, I think that she learned more about life and how to grow in that summer than she had in years.

Some of the other characters that I wanted to note that I think Sarah hit really well on was her Step-Mother Heidi, she is a new Mother, and the way that Sarah wrote about her emotions, and what she is going through I think is fantastic from what I have seen some of my best friends go through, and I think that she captured it perfectly. I could relate somewhat to her Dad, however, he was the hardest character for me to understand.

I really enjoyed what Eli brought to the story, and how he and Auden were able to grow together, but in such different ways (if that makes sense). He for sure had his own troubles to work out, and it was very cool how he was able to work through them while at the same time helping Auden with hers.

I have not read a whole lot of contemporary, however, I am really looking forward to reading more based on what I have read from Sarah, so overall, I give this a 5/5!

Absence

Hi everyone,

Sorry for the absence, life has gotten in the way, but I hope to be back on track this week, and get a few reviews up! Thank you for your patience!

Cheers,

Holly

Sebastian's Poet by Kevin Craig

Published by: Musa Publishing July 6, 2012

Pages: 147

Goodreads link: http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/15725603-sebastian-s-poet

I have never read a book before that brought back a memory from my childhood so vividly before, but that is exactly what happened while reading Sebastian's Poet, it was not a good or bad memory, just something that I thought I had forgotten. 

My heart broke for Sebastian in so many places in this book that I lost count.  He is a very special little boy who had to grow up way to early like so many other kids, and it is not fair. Thankfully Sebastian had Teal that came in to his life and tried to provide for him the way a parent should and show him that that children should be children.

There are a lot of "feels" in this book from heartache for Sebastian and his brother Renee, to rage and then almost pity for their Dad as he could never quite get the help that he needed that for me stemmed from more than one mental health issue. My favourite character had to be Teal though, he was able to understand right off the bat what the boys needed, and tried to provide that for them as much as possible, even if it was something as simple as making them breakfast, or just spending time with them.

This story takes you through a very tumultuous period for Sebastian and Renee, and it looks as though one of them may take the same road that their father did, but by the end of the novel, you really feel that with the twist in the story, they are going to be ok, that even though you may have given up on yourself, and you feel that there is not a whole lot of hope for what the future brings, you really just need that one person behind you saying yes you can, making you believe that you can be whatever you want to be, and your past does not necessarily determine what your outcome will be.

This novel for me is a 5/5 for sure! I would suggest this for anyone who loves a novel that is going to make you feel (even if it is uncomfortable at times), and makes you think about what other people have gone through and why they may be the way that they are.