She strikes up an unlikely friendship with Pope, a lost soul camping in the forest behind her house, and begins a fragile relationship with Jeremiah, the boy next door. Together, over an endless summer, they fix up the abandoned drive-in theater at the edge of town.
Deep down, Jack knows she can’t stay in limbo forever. But sometimes the hardest part of starting over isn’t choosing a path…it’s figuring out how to take that first step forward.
Goodreads Summary
Although I hated the character (Jacklin), I really enjoyed the plot. I never really thought about what actually happened to high school drop-outs. Jacklin drops out of high school to go live with her sister who, as the story goes, ran away to Europe before returning to their small town. Their relationship is far from perfect, but it works in a sisterly way. The descriptions that Jacklin has for her sister, her town, her life, etc...are so intriguing. I could literally feel what she was feeling through her descriptions. She meets an old high school friend who might turn into something more despite her confusing feelings for her old boyfriend. She also meets Pope and worries about him since he is camping in a forest where many go to commit suicide. Throughout most of the book, she mostly meanders through life. There are quite a few times where she is given choices, but often remains stagnant. I really did enjoy the ending.
Jacklin was definitely not one of my favorite characters. She was slovenly, rude, and didn't seem to care much about other people or even her older dog until it was too late. She isolated herself and alienated nearly everyone around her at one point or another in the novel. She literally dropped out of high school for no real reason to take a job that didn't even have enough money to pay her (and she soon lost that job). It was almost like watching someone just spiral all the way down and then remain in a constant loop. I was able to guess what was going to happen at the end so it wasn't really a huge surprise. I think I liked the simplicity of the book despite Jacklin. It was a small town with a bunch of characters and the author had a way of truly making me feel as if I was really in that little town of Mobius. I really enjoyed how the author turned simple events into something that I found worth reading.
4 Stars
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I enjoy reading books about towns with that small town vibe- very "Stars Hollow"-esque : ) I'll have to give this one a look. Great review!