Keeping the Moon by Sarah Dessen, published by Penguin Group.
Keeping the Moon is a novel about fifteen-year-old Nicole Sparks, nicknamed Colie, who goes to live with her Aunt Mira in Colby, North Carolina for the summer. Her mother, Kiki Sparks, is a fitness guru off on an international tour to promote her weight-loss line. Colie and her mother used to be fat, during what they call the "Fat Years" and now that they have both shed the weight they are dealing with their new identities differently. Kiki has embraced this new image and lifestyle and is determined to help others do the same. Colie, however, seems to miss the safety she had behind her fat, although the pain and verbal abuse she received during those years still haunts her. Losing the weight didn't mean losing the insults; kids traded the fat nicknames to slut and "Hole in One," rumors that are just that: untrue and hurtful.
In Colby she acquires a job at Last Chance, a small restaurant in town, and befriends Morgan and Isabel, two girls that are quite different and yet the epitome of what best friends should be. Colie has never had a best friend before, and therefore learns from their relationship with each other while creating one of her own. The relationship between the three girls becomes the focus of the novel as Colie learns what friendship and self-esteem really mean and how they can transform her from her perpetual state of self-defense.
However, just like in Sarah Dessen's other novels, all the characters play a major role, no matter how little their actual part in the novel. Norman, for instance, is a hippie boy who lives downstairs from Mira. He collects odd parts, antiques, useless junk, and above all else, sunglasses. He's an artist and a cook at Last Chance. He doesn't appear to have a lot of stake in the novel, and is mentioned here and there between the fighting and dancing Morgan and Isabel do, however he becomes increasingly important in Colie's life. He also is the one to show her what she looks like to the outside. I loved this character, just as I love all of the male characters Dessen writes. She creates a believable, eccentric male protagonist that has a bit of mystery and charm. He's always likable yet never quite says what he's thinking. He also always likes the female character but it takes her a while to come around or to achieve a certain milestone.
That's what there is to love about Sarah Dessen. Her novels aren't just a "girl meets boy, girl falls for boy, boy and girl are happy together" format. They're more "girl has problem, girl is in process of addressing problem, girl meets boy, boy helps her find herself, girl is happy with herself, girl and boy are happy together." That idea is especially portrayed through Aunt Mira in the book. Mira is overweight, she wears crazy outfits, she rides her bicycle all over town, and she also is a collector of broken items. However, Mira says, "I've always known who I am. I might not work perfectly, or be like them, but that's okay. I know I work in my own way" (pg 171). And that's really the lesson to be learned from this novel. As long as you're happy with yourself just ignore the comments that other people make. They make those because they can't understand you and that scares them. "Because it's so hard, in any life, to believe in what you can't fully understand" (pg 228).
Needless to say, I recommend this one. It's a quick delightful read, it has a lot of good self-image lessons for teens in it, and adorable relationships that are as realistic as they are complicated.
Favorite quotes: "...an electric solar system that pulled things in, turned them around, and gave them a new life all their own" (pg 186).
"You're not the kind of person who smiles for nothing, Colie. I have to earn every one" (pg 189).
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