Inside Izzy's Bookshelf: The Moon and More

It sucks that the last post I left on this blog had to be a sad one.; hopefully, as this blog grows, I'll keep the sad posts to a minimum. But now that we've gotten our first sorrowful post out of the way, it's time to move on to something more fun! And what better way than to talk about another subject I'm passionate about: BOOKS!

I was inspired to make this post from one of my posts on my Instagram. This is honestly what I love about blogging; inspiration can come from anywhere.

From manga to self-help books, books have been a major part of my life since I was a little girl! Leave me alone with a nice book and you can be sure I'll have read at least half of it after at least fifteen minutes! To me, any time spent reading is well spent, and once I get addicted to a good book, it's hard to get me out of the zone!

So this week, I'd like to talk about a very addicting book written by an author near and dear to my heart: The Moon and More by Sarah Dessen!

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Story Overview

The Moon and More takes place in the summer paradise beach town of Colby, a recurring location in some of Sarah Dessen's books. But its themes and subjects are far from what you would expect for a story with such idyllic scenery; the story has its characters dealing with divorce (and its effects on a child), romantic drama, and planning for the future.

In terms of the main conflict, though, I would say The Moon and More's main conflict is roots vs. spontaneity. Or to be more precise, the sweet comfort of home vs. the allure of the outside world.

The Moon and More stars Emaline, a college-bound resident of Colby who is spending her last summer with her family, both immediate and extended. Naturally, this last summer of hers is full of the roots vs. spontaneity conflict, from Emaline's helping her half-brother Benji deal with his parents' divorce to her relationships with Luke and Theo, the story's two male leads.

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So Why Do You Like This Book, Izzy?

Well, I have the good fortune to say that my parents aren't divorced, so I can't talk much about that. But as someone who has great and vivid memories of both my hometown and college, I can wholeheartedly say that the conflict Emaline faces in the book is completely natural. Even as I was enjoying my time in college, I still found myself longing for my friends at home; I even still keep in touch with many of my friends I went to high school with.

That's why I found it very realistic when Emaline started going with Theo after her relationship with Luke ended. When that happened, I was happy that Emaline left Theo, mainly because Luke was a cheater despite being in a long-term relationship, but also due to Emaline getting to know someone as lively as Theo. Naturally, I really liked Theo in the beginning; he came off as a real go-getter and his ambition was infectious.

But of course, not everything was perfect in that relationship either. Throughout the story, Theo has been trying to connect with Clyde Conway, a reclusive artist who was a big hit in New York City. But aside from Clyde, Theo seemed to look down on the other Colby residents, much to Emaline's dismay. Theo never really seemed to understand that Colby was very dear to Emaline, and despite the lavish dates that Theo took Emaline on, their relationship only really hinged on the fact that Theo just wanted to get to Clyde.

Naturally, that relationship fails as well. When I read that part for the first time, my only thought was: "Why, Emaline? At least he didn't cheat on you like Luke did!" But after the initial shock (and rereading that part for the sake of this post), I realized that it makes sense now.

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The Message of the Story & Recommendations

Now that I'm writing this post, I still hold to the belief that Emaline ending up with neither guy in the end makes sense, and not because of Girl Power or anything like that. However, I agree that not every male and female lead in a Sarah Dessen novel needs to get together in the end.

The real reason why Emaline not ending up with either Luke or Theo makes sense is because it's okay to hold both your home and new experiences dear to one's heart. To me, Luke represents Colby while Theo represents the outside world, and by Emaline not ending one with either guy, it means that she's decided to forge her own path with the lessons she's learned from dating both, something I think is best exemplified by both Emaline remaining friends with Luke and especially the book's final line:

"No matter where I was, or what got me there, I would always feel at home when I touched sand."

Overall, if you had to ask me what the moral of The Moon and More is, it would be: treasure both where you come from and where you go.

Now that I'm writing this post, I honestly think that's what every college-bound teen needs to hear; even if you travel far away, never forget how sacred your home is. For those of you dear readers who are college-bound or know someone who is college-bound, I highly recommend this book for them. In addition to it just being a thrilling book, the lessons in this book are sure to stay with any reader for the rest of their lives

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So, there you have it: my thoughts on Sarah Dessen's The Moon and More! Sarah Dessen is an author I've been following for a long time; I even got into writing because of her! Naturally, I'll be sharing my thoughts about more of her novels in the future!

But now that I've revealed one of my addicting novels, I open the floor to all of you: are you a Sarah Dessen fan as well, or is there another author you look up to? Is there an author whose novels you absolutely look forward to and who? Is there a particular book that just gets you in the zone and what is it?

As always, thank you for reading another post from the Izzy Insider! If wish to support my work, feel free to continue reading my work and follow my social media: Instagram and Twitter.

You can also buy some awesome and high-quality health and beauty products from my shop: Izzy's Vitality Vibes! These products need to be tried to be believed and I recommend them without hesitation!

But until next week, stay tuned in to the Izzy Insider! You definitely won't regret it!