The
Last Song ,
by Nicholas Sparks
New York City girl Ronnie Miller is happy
school is over. She is looking forward to the fun she
and her friends will have each summer vacation day.
Her world crashes down when she is told by her mother
that she and her little brother will be spending the
entire summer with their father. When Steve Miler left
his family and moved back to the small beach town where
he was raised, his seven-year-old son Jonah and 15-year-old
daughter Ronnie were shocked and devastated. Ronnie,
who like her father was an accomplished pianist, had
enjoyed composing music and playing the piano with him.
She adored and worshiped her father, but when he left
she stated she would never play piano or speak to Steve
again. Now, three years later, she has kept that promise
and again is shocked when her mother tells her that
she and Jonah must spend the entire summer with their
father. Ronnie, two months shy of her 18th birthday,
is furious with her mother and can't see herself fitting
in at a beach town in North Carolina. Wearing nothing
but black, with black fingernail polish and purple streaks
in her hair, Ronnie is sure to be an oddity in the conservative
southern town. Ronnie's appearance proves to be the
least of her problems as she encounters violence, arson,
illness, jealousy and prejudice in what should have
been an idyllic summer vacation.
People and events that Ronnie encounters
in her stay with her father cause her to rethink many
of her ideas. The transformation that comes about in
Ronnie is not sudden but develops gradually as she gets
to know her father again and as she sees how he handles
situations that occur. Her father's determination to
complete a stained glass window for the church has a
great bearing on her better understanding of the man
he is and not what she believed in the past. A major
turning point comes about when Ronnie discovers a nest
of loggerhead sea turtle eggs behind her father's beach
house and realizes the importance of safeguarding the
nest. She learns about life and understanding as she
waits for the day the turtles will hatch and find their
way to the sea. She also finds love, not only with Will,
a fine young man, but for life as well.
Nicholas Sparks' poignant story brings
out the importance of trust and understanding. His message
is that trust and understanding make it possible for
people to make the right decisions and that misconceptions
and assumptions can bring problems. Ronnie, her father,
Will, and their friends alternately give their opinions.
Each chapter is told from a particular character's point
of view and the fact that the female reader narrates
those of female characters and the male reader narrates
those about the men makes for an absorbing and entertaining
audio book experience. Highly recommended.
John
Mormon
11/20/09
|
