Rereading Sarah Dessen: This Lullaby

I'm taking part in the I Eat Words Sarah Dessen Read/Reread Challenge this year and it's already month two! Check out this post that explains the details about the awesomeness that is this challenge. This month we read This Lullaby. This has long been my favourite Dessen novel and I must say that I was terrified that I wouldn't love it as much as I used to. Read on for the thoughts of myself and my best friend, Sandy.

Here's the synopsis:

When it comes to relationships, Remy doesn't mess around. After all, she's learned all there is to know from her mother, who's currently working on husband number five. But there's something about Dexter that seems to defy all of Remy's rules. He certainly doesn't seem like Mr. Right. For some reason, however, Remy just can't seem to shake him. Could it be that Remy's starting to understand what those love songs are all about?

About the Story

Main  Character: Remy Starr
Age: 18
School Year or Summer?: Summer
Boy: Dexter
First description of boy: Not a good first impression as Dexter falls into a chair and knocks Remy into a wall. She’s less than impressed and ends up calling him an asshole. “It was a guy with black curly hair, around my age, wearing a bright orange T-shirt. And for some reason he was smiling.”
Crushable?: Yes. He’s funny and sweet (without being annoying), and a musician to boot.
Big Secret?: No. Remy has enough drama without having to hide something. Though someone else is hiding something (part of a minor storyline).
Heavy Storyline?: Sort of. Remy doesn’t believe in love because she’s watched her mother remarry over and over again. This has messed her up more than she, or anyone else, realized.
Parents Together?: No.
Siblings: One brother, older.
Takes Place In: Lakeview

Cameos: Yes, a newly realized one for me. Scarlett from Someone Like You is the manager of the coffee place where one of Dexter’s band mate’s works.

About the Book
Released: May 2002
Epigraph?: Yes, two. "In the depth of winter, / I have finally learned that / within me there lay / an invincible summer." – Camus. “She’ll be back soon. / She’s just writing.” – Caroline
Format (of the copy I read): Paperback (which is starting to show its wear!)
Own?: Yes.
Signed?: Yes.
Read or Reread: Reread
Age when first read: Likely 15 but possibly 16

New cover vs older cover: I really love the new cover!

My Thoughts

Remy is a great character and I think she's the reason why this This Lullaby will stay near the top of my favourite books list. She had to take on some more responsibilities than she should have when she was younger. Nothing too drastic, but her mom always seemed to need an extra push or helping hand - like with planning yet another wedding. Remy is incredibly organized. In fact, calling her anal would not be out of line. She's an 18 year old girl who is desperate to move on to the next stage in her life - college - and trying her hardest to keep love out of her life. She's strong, smart, and terrified of love. Dexter (literally) crashes into her just when she needs it and he does his best to convince her that he (and love) is worth a shot.

This is one of Dessen's novels that has a lot to do with the romance but it's not really the love story that is the point. Remy needs to work on herself and her belief that love is a sham and anyone who falls for it gets their heart broken. What I like about her novels is that the romance is there and lovely but not in an "in your face" kind of way.
So, the big question is...is this still my favourite Dessen? Honestly, I'm not sure. I think it was my favourite because it was what I needed to read at the time. I was a little bit like Remy in high school and dated and had crushes on lots of boys (it was all quite innocent, I assure you) and didn't really know what a successful relationship looked like. I still love this one but I think I will reserve judgement on my "favourite" until the end of the year.

Sandy's Thoughts
This Lullaby is the basic tale of teenage love with a twist. The main character Remy Starr does not want to be in love, she doesn’t believe in it. That is until Dexter literally crashes into her life and forces her to break all of her rules and forego her checklists.

Remy is a strong female character, one of Dessen’s strongest. She is no nonsense, cynical and not afraid to speak her mind. But like all characters she is flawed. Her inability to believe that love lasts turns her into a control freak and a bitter bitch as she describes herself.

Dexter is her total opposite. He is impulsive, optimistic and a deep-seated romantic. Once she allows herself to give in to his persistence she opens her mind and her heart to the question of love. She wonders what it would be like to love so strongly that you can’t control yourself or your actions. (page 161) She reluctantly gives in and by doing so only half gives herself over to the idea that she could fall in love. She never truly understands how to do such a thing. To her love is chaotic, it means impatience, disorder and an inevitable ending with heartbreak for those caught unawares.

Dexter ultimately has to be the one to prove that love is worth it and in the end that will take nothing but time.

The theme behind this story is timing. Everything has its own time and place in love and in life. The story begins with the ending of one time and the beginning of another, it takes place in what Dessen calls the in between. Timing begins the story of Remy and Dexter. Timing is a factor in bringing them together and tearing them apart. Decisions or actions that may seem minor or insignificant shape life on a daily basis and play a big role in all types of relationships

Dessen shows us that at the right time, with the right person Remy is able to break down the wall that her parents helped to build and find the love that she deserves. Her father may have created the precedent of men leaving while her mother reinforced it with her revolving door of husbands but Dexter can see through it because his own mother has had six husbands. He breaks down her wall by breaking all her rules. He gets involved in her life in a way no other boy has by being a determined and stable presence with a little bit of quirk for good measure.

“This Lullaby”, the song her father left her is another constant, one she has lived with all her life. When Dexter plays it that first time it freaks her out enough to end their relationship before it gets too serious. It scares her into hiding once again. “This Lullaby” becomes the soundtrack of her life, especially when she deals with men who barely know her and relationships that can never last. By the end of the book she has made peace with the song and with its meaning. Dexter has become her constant and “This Lullaby” itself has taken on a new meaning, that of hope for the unknown future.

Next month...Dreamland. I'm looking forward to this one because I don't really remember much of it, other than it's one of Dessen's heavier novels.

Sarah Dessen Rocks My World

If you were to ask me who my favourite author is my answer would be Sarah Dessen. I don't care if she's a young adult author and I'm not a young adult anymore (well...technically I am, but not in the world of book categories). I will keep reading her books as long as she keeps writing them, no matter how old I get.

I've been reading Sarah Dessen for a really long time. Her first novel, That Summer , was originally released in 1996 (all these dates will be coming from the Goodreads pages) and her second, Someone Like Youwas published in 1998. When I started reading her books I was in high school so it was a few years after they were released (somewhere around 2001 or 2002 I think) but still early on in her career. I happened upon Someone Like You one day when I was at the library (and was very likely working at the time...found some of the best books that way). I can barely remember reading it but I do recall telling my best friend about it because I loved it so much. She read it and we've been hooked ever since.

Dessen has written a total of ten books and, for the most part, I find I love the newest one more than the last. I say "for the most part" because I didn't actually love What Happened to Goodbye (released this past May) as much as Along for the Ride (released June 2009). I'm not really sure why but it didn't seem to grab me as much - maybe I'm *gasp* getting too old for her novels? I sincerely hope that is not the case.

Let me do a quick mini review of Dessen's newest novel, What Happened to Goodbye - I really did like McLean and the fact that she and her dad had a special bond over basketball (I've always been tall so I played basketball myself all the way through elementary and high school). I also loved that her dad had a job much like Gordon Ramsey on Kitchen Nightmares - just without the accent and massive amounts of swearing.  Now, don't get me wrong I absolutely adored the book. It just wasn't one of my favourites. I would still highly recommend it - especially to teens who are looking for something that has nothing to do with vampires.

I've written before about how much I love Sarah Dessen (you can read the posts here and here). When I used to work for a bookstore I would always try to recommend her books to teenagers and the parents who were looking to buy for their daughters. What I really love about Dessen is that no matter what your own situation in life is you will be able to find something in the main character (always female and always a teenager) that you can relate to. And it doesn't hurt that the novels all seem to be set during the summer! My all time favourite Dessen novel is This Lullaby. I think it's because I was able to identify with Remy and her situation a little bit more and I really wanted to find my own Dexter! It's been years since I've read it (and it's on my fairly large pile of to re-read pile, along with Something Borrowed and the entire Harry Potter series!) but I remember absolutely loving it.

With this year's release of What Happened to Goodbye, Sarah Dessen went on the usual book tour - with one notable exception. She came to Canada!!! I was very happy about this because she came to Toronto and I'm only a couple of hours north of the city. My best friend and I decided that no matter what we were going to one of the two talks and signings in September. Now, bear with me for a bit of story time...It was late in the evening the day before we planned to go to the Indigo event instead of the library event the day after and I decided to check my email. Imagine my surprise when I discovered an email telling me that I had won a contest and WOULD GET TO MEET SARAH DESSEN!!! I was so incredibly shocked and immediately called my friend to change our plans. She was just as speechless as I was! I have to say that I was not impressed that I found out with hardly any notice, but we changed our plans and made the drive to Toronto to the library event (in hindsight and from what we heard, it was a much better venue and event). We couldn't believe it. We got to go into a room with a few other contest winners and their guests (probably about 15 of us total) and chat with Sarah Dessen. It was unbelievable. We hung back and let some of the other girls ask questions (in this post by Dessen you can see a pic of the room but my friend and I were standing outside the frame!) but soaked up the awesomness of the evening. We were definitely some of the oldest there, we're 24 and many of the others in the audience ranged from 14-20, but we didn't mind one bit. We got our books signed and had the chance to talk to her quickly. Then there was the talk afterwards which was absolutely amazing. We learned so much about her (and I totally want to be her best friend) and her writing style. This was easily the highlight of my year!

Can you tell that I'm totally freaking out?

If you're still with me after this novel of a post, all I can really say is that I adore Sarah Dessen. I think she is an absolutely amazing person (read her blog to learn more about her) and an equally amazing author. I can't recommend her books enough. Even if you're past the young adult stage, I still think most people would love her books. I'd love to know if any of you have read any of Sarah Dessen's novels and what you thought about them. I'm already looking forward to her next one!

Happy reading :)