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3.85 AVERAGE
3.85 AVERAGE
lighthearted
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
emotional
reflective
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
I honestly love Sarah Dessen which is why I picked up this book and started reading. Just like all of her other books, the main character has mother issues. The main character, Mclean being her real name, is living with her dad and in a new town ends up finding the real her.
This book was absolutely amazing but does have a slow start. The first couple of chapters are about her move and about her previous lives. The action doesn't really start until she runs into her weird neighbor Dave. The story picks up from there and ends in a great way. I would recommend this to anyone.
This book was absolutely amazing but does have a slow start. The first couple of chapters are about her move and about her previous lives. The action doesn't really start until she runs into her weird neighbor Dave. The story picks up from there and ends in a great way. I would recommend this to anyone.
emotional
hopeful
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
A person that changes a lot in this book and whose facades are discovered. It is amazing!
This was actually the second Sarah Dessen book I read and I loved it just as much as the first (Along For The Ride).
I wished for a bit more Mclean&Dave, but anyways, I really liked this book. I got goosebumps while I read it and I wanted to laugh, to cry along with Mclean.
Once again, Sarah Dessen managed to amaze me. She truly is a great writer.
♥ ♥ ♥
I wished for a bit more Mclean&Dave, but anyways, I really liked this book. I got goosebumps while I read it and I wanted to laugh, to cry along with Mclean.
Once again, Sarah Dessen managed to amaze me. She truly is a great writer.
♥ ♥ ♥
Very cutesy YA novel about a girl, McLean, who is struggling to find her identity as she moves with her dad across the country. I found Mcleans voice like able and genuine but felt that some of the supporting characters were a little shaky and overall led to areas in the plot that fell flat. Overall, a good easy read. I will definitely look into Sarah Dessen's other novels.
I have read this book twice now, and I have loved it both times!
I wanted more romance ugh why else would I read Sarah Dessen
Mclean Sweet used to have the perfect life. But that was years ago and miles away. Before her parents' bitter divorce. Before she and her father started moving from town to town like it was going out of style.
It was long before Mclean started reinventing herself in each new town. Eliza, Lizbet, Beth. All of her personas have a different story: cheerleader, drama nerd, student government junkie. It's easy to live the part once you choose the role, once you let the moments choose you. Especially when none of them are the real Mclean. Especially when Mclean doesn't even know who the real her is anymore.
Things are different in Lakeview. Instead of adopting a new persona for this newest town, Mclean starts being herself--or as close to it as she can be anymore. Seemingly random moments come together leading Mclean to friends and maybe even a home all while forcing her to do the unthinkable: just be real in What Happened to Goodbye (2011) by Sarah Dessen.
What Happened to Goodbye is Dessen's tenth novel and, as it turns out, this one proves that her writing really does live up to all of the hype.
Dessen's writing is literary and immediately appealing as she evokes not only a town and a lifestyle but also Mclean's emotions as she struggles with what it means to make a place for herself in yet another new community as Dessen brings up a lot of interesting threads about what family, and home, really mean.
The story here meanders towards the end in a way that makes perfect sense and ultimately fits perfectly for the story and the characters. And happily so since What Happened to Goodbye is all about the characters--Mclean, of course, but also her friends and her family as well. Every bit of this story is character driven and all of it comes together to great effect in a book that is really quite lovely.
Possible Pairings: Drawing the Ocean by Carolyn MacCullough, The Secret Life of Prince Charming by Deb Caletti, Moonglass by Jessi Kirby, After the Kiss by Terra Elan McVoy, The Miles Between by Mary E. Pearson, How to Say Goodbye in Robot by Natalie Standiford
It was long before Mclean started reinventing herself in each new town. Eliza, Lizbet, Beth. All of her personas have a different story: cheerleader, drama nerd, student government junkie. It's easy to live the part once you choose the role, once you let the moments choose you. Especially when none of them are the real Mclean. Especially when Mclean doesn't even know who the real her is anymore.
Things are different in Lakeview. Instead of adopting a new persona for this newest town, Mclean starts being herself--or as close to it as she can be anymore. Seemingly random moments come together leading Mclean to friends and maybe even a home all while forcing her to do the unthinkable: just be real in What Happened to Goodbye (2011) by Sarah Dessen.
What Happened to Goodbye is Dessen's tenth novel and, as it turns out, this one proves that her writing really does live up to all of the hype.
Dessen's writing is literary and immediately appealing as she evokes not only a town and a lifestyle but also Mclean's emotions as she struggles with what it means to make a place for herself in yet another new community as Dessen brings up a lot of interesting threads about what family, and home, really mean.
The story here meanders towards the end in a way that makes perfect sense and ultimately fits perfectly for the story and the characters. And happily so since What Happened to Goodbye is all about the characters--Mclean, of course, but also her friends and her family as well. Every bit of this story is character driven and all of it comes together to great effect in a book that is really quite lovely.
Possible Pairings: Drawing the Ocean by Carolyn MacCullough, The Secret Life of Prince Charming by Deb Caletti, Moonglass by Jessi Kirby, After the Kiss by Terra Elan McVoy, The Miles Between by Mary E. Pearson, How to Say Goodbye in Robot by Natalie Standiford