Anna M's Blog – my CyberEnglish blog

“Well, it’s true that I have been hurt in my life. Quite a bit. But it’s also true that I have loved, and been loved. And that carries a weight of its own. A greater weight, in my opinion. It’s like that pie chart we talked about earlier. In the end, I’ll look back on my life and see that the greatest piece of it was love. The problems, the divorces, the sadness….those will be there too, but just smaller slivers, tiny pieces.” (265)

This is my last independent reading blog post for my freshman year, and I really wanted to end this year of English writing about something happy…..love. I thought that this quote from the book This Lullaby was a perfect love quote. It is a quote by Remy’s mother Barbara. Barbara has had a very difficult life. She’s gone through many divorces and has been hurt too many times before. Her daughter Remy has also been struggling with relationships as of late. When Remy was having a really bad day and needed someone to talk to, her mother had a talk with Remy about love and life. She explained that although her life has not been the best, she has loved and been loved, and that’s the most important thing. I think that Remy’s mom is absolutely right. Love is what this world needs. It brings people together and makes them happy. Maybe if we all loved a little more and hated a lot less this world would be a better place.

The way that a book is written, and who’s telling the story, can have a big effect on the success of the book. That Summer, written by Sarah Dessen, is an example of how the narrator of the story makes it a great read. Remy Starr is telling the story in her point of view. She is going through an interesting relationship with a guy who is not her type at all. All the while, she keeps thinking to herself that it’s just going to be a summer fling, and in the fall when she goes to College, Dexter (her boyfriend) will be a thing of the past. Dexter, however, has different plans. He really likes Remy and wants to be with her for a long time, even if it is a long distance relationship. Sadly, Remy has other ideas.

The reader finds out about Remy’s plans soon after her and Dexter start dating.  Dexter, on the other hand, has no idea whatsoever. Having Remy narrate the story makes it much more interesting. The readers all know that Remy is going to end her relationship with Dexter before the summer ends, but they know when or how. It makes you want to keep reading so you can find out what happens. Their relationship ends in an unexpected way that not even Remy knew was coming!

“This Lullaby is only a few words, a simple run of chords, quiet here in this spare room, but you can hear it, hear it, wherever you may go, even if I let you down, this lullaby plays on…” (344)

This is the famous song that Remy’s father wrote for her in the book This Lullaby, by Sarah Dessen. Remy’s father left her when she was very young and then ended up dying of a heart attack. This song is the only memory that Remy has of her father. But, for some reason, Remy hates hearing the song. It reminds her of her father who she thinks was a terrible person for leaving and not being the type of father she wanted.

I think that the lyrics in this song are very simple, yet so powerful. Remy’s father expresses his love for her in just a few lines. But there’s one part of the song that doesn’t seem right to me. “Even if I let you down…” Remy’s father is implying to her that he’s going to let her down. If he knows that she’s going to be let down and have a hard time, then why would he do that? The song is so sincere and loving, but at the same time, there’s a feeling of sorrow because he knows that he is going to let Remy down.

The title of a book can often be a deciding factor when you are picking a book to read. When you look at the title of a book, it should get you interested and make you want to find out what it’s about. When I was looking for books to read at the library, I came across the book, This Lullaby, by Sarah Dessen. The first thing that I noticed was the title, and it seemed like a type of book that any teenage girl would be interested in reading. After reading the back of the book, I was convinced that it would be a good read. But, I was still wondering what that title of the book had to do with the story. I figured that it might take a while for the title to become relevant, just like it does in many other books. Well, I was wrong! The title was explained in the first paragraph of the book. This Lullaby was actually a song written for Remy Starr (the main character), by her father who later passed away. The song became famous, but no one knew that the song was actually written for Remy.

I was quite pleased that the meaning of the title was revealed so early in the story. Since I knew the meaning of the title, I was able to better understand everything that was going on in the book and get more out of it. This is why I think that the title of the book, and when its meaning is revealed, can have a huge effect on the reader and the story itself.

This is my photo story, The Last Song.

The Last Song, by Nicholas Sparks is a touching and emotional book that has many scenes and events that could be considered the most significant. Well after I thought about it for a while, I feel that the most significant event in this book is when Ronnie finishes her father’s song and plays it on the piano for him. This is the first time that Ronnie has played piano in over 3 years. Steve, her father is going through the toughest time in his entire life, and he needs something to keep him going in these times. Ronnie’s piano playing is just what he needs. It also is a very important moment in Ronnie’s life. It must have felt like a heavy weight was being lifted off of her shoulders when she sat down and played the music. It is a sign that everything is better in her relationship with her father, and she really loves him.

As I was reading this part of the book, I have to admit that I cried. I also play piano, and I know how much a song can mean. I could really picture Ronnie’s emotion in the song, and her love for her father. It was such a touching scene to read, and it’s one of those scenes where if you were at the movies, half of the theater would probably be bawling their eyes out. I wish that more writers would put scenes in their book like this one

“Life, he realized, was much like a song. In the beginning there is mystery, in the end there is confirmation, but it’s in the middle where all the emotion resides to make the whole thing worthwhile.” (376)

This is my favorite quote from The Last Song by Nicholas Sparks. Ronnie’s father Steve says this when he is going through the saddest and hardest time in his life. It shows that even though he’s gone through terribly tough times, he is able to find the positive things in his life. It is a very deep quote that I feel sums up the entire book in just a few short sentences.

This quote is an excellent example of a simile. Steve is comparing life to a song. At the beginning of a song, there is a feeling of suspense because you are wondering what’s going to happen next. The song keeps building and getting more emotional. When it gets to the middle of the song and the beautiful melodies are flowing, you feel all the emotion of the piece. At the end of the song, it comes to a calm and everyone is happy and content. Life is often times just like that, full of mystery, suspense, emotion, happiness, and confirmation. But, we have to make the most out of life if we want to be happy in the end.

When you think about classic love stories that you see in movies and on TV shows, they usually consist of this: boy meets girl, they are nothing alike, they get to know each other, and then end up falling in love. The book, The Last Song by Nicholas Sparks, is pretty much your typical love story, but this love story in particular is one of the best that I’ve ever heard. Ronnie is visiting her father in North Carolina, having a terrible summer, when she meets Will, a beach volleyball player who seems like just another one of those stuck up, filthy rich kids. Ronnie can’t deny that Will is very attractive, but she knows that he would never go for a girl like her. So when Will starts showing interest in Ronnie, she is beyond confused. He is nice to her, and talks to her like he really cares about her. They begin spending more time together and soon become very close. Finally, they both realize that they have feelings for each other, and need to be together.

Ronnie and Will fall in love, and have a relationship that anyone would be jealous of. He treats her like she’s the most important thing in the world, and would never let anyone or anything harm her. She loves him, and wants to spend every moment with him. It’s a classic love story, and it’s one of those stories that make you wish that you were the character in the book who falls in love and lives happily ever.

The main character in the book that I’m reading, The Last Song, is Ronnie Miller. Her parents are divorced and she has been living with her mom and younger brother Jonah in New York City. She is a very rebellious teen that has been caught shoplifting and goes to the clubs on a regular basis. She has no respect for others and also has no respect for herself. When her mother informs her that she and Jonah will be spending the summer with their father in Wrightsville, North Carolina, Ronnie is furious. When Ronnie was younger, she was amazing at playing piano, and her father was her teacher. She had the opportunity to go to Julliard and had so much potential, but when her dad left the family, she decided that she hated piano, and would never play again. Ronnie’s father is also a concert pianist, and he really wants her to play piano again. But, he’s just happy to have her stay with him for the summer. Ronnie knows that when she visits her dad, he will try to get her to play piano again.

To me, Ronnie seems like a very complex person. She had such an amazing talent, and she just threw it all away! If I was as good as her at playing the piano and had the opportunity to go to Julliard, I would never stop playing piano forever. She is still very upset about her parent’s divorce and she doesn’t plan on forgiving, or let alone talking to her father. Going to visit her dad for the summer is probably going to be a good thing in the long run, because it will give her a chance to think about what’s really important to her, and discover a whole new side of her that she never knew existed. Ronnie’s summer could possibly be a start of something new.

“Maybe Ashley was right, for once. I thought about telling her this in the quiet of the car with only the rain drumming overhead. I looked over at her and thought better of it. Some things you don’t have to tell. Some things, between sisters, are understood. (193)”

This passage shows the special bond that most sisters have. They understand each other and sometimes don’t even need to say what’s on their mind, because it’s understood. This bond often joins sister together in the bad times and keeps them strong.

In the book That Summer, Haven and Ashley have a very interesting sisterly relationship. They used to be close, but now that Ashley is grown up and has greatly changed, they have strayed away from each other. Haven is afraid of losing Ashley when she gets married, and Ashley thinks of Haven as being selfish for her actions during the time before the wedding. When everything is falling apart, and Ashley and Haven are farther apart than ever, it actually draws them closer to one another. They are a perfect example of how in tough times sisters can put their differences apart and join together to help each other.

I have a younger sister, and even though we do fight, I must admit that we’ve had many moments when our sisterly bond results in many great times that I will always remember. If only everyone would act like sisters and put their differences and arguments aside, and simply love each other. Then this world just might be a better place.