The Rest of the Story
The Rest of the Story, by Sarah Dessen, is a sweet and simple story about Emma Saylor. Although Emma doesn’t remember much of her mother, she remembers all the stories she heard about the lake where her mom had grown up. Now that it’s just Emma and her Dad, everything is perfectly normal, almost predictable in a sense. That is, until Emma unexpectedly has to spend a summer at the lake with the grandmother she hasn’t seen for years. When Emma arrives at the lake, she realizes the area is split into two areas, the middle-class North Lake and the classy, elite Lake North resort. As the summer goes on, Emma feels she begins to become divided into two different sides as well. Emma with her dad, and Saylor at the lake. And then there’s Roo, Emma’s childhood best friend. Roo is the key to Emma’s past, family, and history. Emma struggles not to fall for the Lake’s magical charm, and Roo’s charm too. When the summer’s finally over, and it’s time to go back home, what side of Emma will win out, Emma or Saylor?
The Rest of the Story is sweet, light-hearted, and perfectly shows that no family is perfect. The story is family focused and touches on more serious topics, like addiction, but the story is still light-hearted and doesn’t become a downer. The story was a fun read and I was entertained from the very beginning. Although sometimes the story can be a little predictable, and was sometimes even cheesy, I was still enraptured with the story and characters. The characters are realistic and the plot line is strong. Although there aren’t many surprises, the stories are comforting in their own way. I recommend this story to anyone who enjoys YA novels.
Grade Level:
- Suggested: 6th-8th
- Advanced: 5th
- Genre: Realistic-fiction
- Key Elements: Family, memories
- Possible Themes: Not every family is perfect
Overall Rating: 3.5/5
Happy Reading!
-The Book Lover-
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