The Truth About Forever
Dessen, Sarah. The Truth About Forever. Puffin, 2006. $7.99. ISBN 978-0142406250 (pap.); Viking, 2004. $16.99. ISBN 978-0670036394.
Genre: Realistic Fiction
Themes: Loss of a parent, grief, finding one's way, finding one's voice, friendship, mother/daughter relationships, fear, love.
Author information: Sarah Dessen was born in 1970 in Illinois, but has spent most of her life in Chapel Hill, NC. Her parents were both professors at the University of North Carolina: her mother is a classicist and her father teaches Shakespeare.
She lives in the country with her husband, some lizards and two spoiled dogs. She is expecting her first child in 2007. She love Starbucks mochas and makes a mean bean salad. She is currently working on her eighth book, Lock and Key, which is scheduled to be published in 2008.
Plot Summary: Macy Queen's life is structured and controlled. As summer begins, her perfect boyfriend Jason is heading off to Brain Camp. Her time is supposed to be spent staying on top of her studies, taking over Jason's horrible job at the library and helping her mother in any way she can, and that includes NEVER talking about her father's death. Macy's mother hires Wish Catering for a work function at home. They are disorganized, hilarious and need Macy's help. She slowly winds her way into their lives, and they into hers. With these new and unexpected friendships, Macy begins to remove the layers of protective coating she has held on to so tightly since she witnessed her father dying.
Booktalk: “I nodded. `I'm fine. Fine.' That was my mantra. The thing I kept saying in my mind.” Macy Queen is the perfect sixteen-year old. She does well at school, studies all the time, has the dream boyfriend, never talks back and now works at the library. Macy has taken over her boyfriend's library job while he is away at camp; she works with two girls who despise her as they think Jason is dating beneath himself. They are rude to her, they ridicule her and they don't let her help any patrons, as they have no faith in her abilities. But, Macy never speaks up to defend herself, as she has been trained to keep everything inside. She is just fine. Actually, she is broken inside; she holds it all together because she always has and knows she is supposed to be strong for her mother. Macy is quietly shattered by her father's death. Not only has she lost her favorite person, but she witnessed his death and feels responsible for it. Her sister Caroline has become increasingly frustrated and saddened by both Macy and their mother's inabilities to talk about this terrible and tragic event. Then along comes the crew from Wish Catering and Macy's world is turned upside-down. Two of her new friends, Wes and Kristy, help Macy step out of her comfort zone and to realize that something has to shift, as she will not be able to continue at this pace. She needs to be able to talk about what happened, with friends, with her boyfriend and most of all, with her mother. Wes is a tattooed, talented artist who had a stint in reform school and is the exact opposite of boyfriend Jason, the all-state math champ with the highest GPA in the history of the school. Jason is off at Brain Camp though, and it is Wes who gets Macy talking and soon she is rethinking how she wants to live her life.
Curriculum tie-ins:
English, Creative Writing
“For any one of us our forever could end in an hour, or a hundred years from now. You can never know for sure, so you'd better make every second count... If your forever was ending tomorrow, was this how you'd want to have spent it??”
In this quote from Chapter 7 of The Truth About Forever, Kristy is trying to explain to Macy that she needs to break out of the rut she's in.
Write a story about living life to the fullest, being sure to think about your own life and whether you are really living it the way you want to.
Social Studies
Dealing with the death of a loved one- some questions for discussion:
- How does our society handle death?
- Do we face death head-on?
- Do we avoid the people who need our help the most?
- What would you do if a good friend lost a parent?
- Does your school have good resources for students who face the tragedy of losing someone they love?
Business
Delia's catering business seems disorganized and chaotic, although it apparently works for her and her staff. Write a plan for starting your own small business, including requirements for budget, inventory, space needed, etc.
If you loved this, you'll like:
- Blume, Judy. Tiger Eyes. Simon & Schuster, 1981.
- Green, John. Looking for Alaska. Speak, 2007. (also on this year's GMBA list)
- Haddix, Margaret Peterson. Takeoffs and Landings. Aladdin, 2003.
- Peters, Julie Anne. Far from Xanadu. Little Brown, 2005
- Sones, Sonya. One of Those Hideous Books Where the Mother Dies. Simon & Schuster, 2004.
Other books by this author:
- Just Listen. Viking Books, 2006.
- That Summer. Speak, 2004.
- This Lullaby. Viking Books, 2002.
- Dreamland. Viking Books, 2000.
- Keeping the Moon. Viking Books, 1999.
- Someone Like You. Viking Books, 1998.
Additional resources:
The Truth about Forever is available in an unabridged audio format (CD and cassette) from Recorded Books.
Resources for teens dealing with the loss of a parent:
- Fitzgerald, Helen. The Grieving Teen: A Guide for Teenagers and their Friends. Fireside, 2000.
- Hughes, Lynne. You Are Not Alone: Teens Talk About Life after the Loss of a Parent. Scholastic, 2005.
- Kidshealth Web site
- The Healing Place
