last+song2

====T h e L a s t  S o n g ==== By Nicholas Sparks Alexa Alyssa Allison Jyll Maria Week 1

Alyssa- Characters In the book, // The Last Song, // by Nicholas Sparks, the main character is Ronnie. Ronnie is a nickname for the girl’s name Veronica. She is a 17 year old girl, impatiently waiting to be a free 18 year old. Her parents, Kim and Steve, are divorced and trying to get along for the kids. Ronnie also has a younger brother, Jonah. She has a lot of trouble getting along happily with her family, mostly because she doesn’t want to. The first night that Ronnie is forced to stay at her dad’s, she goes to the carnival on the beach. Ronnie goes to a volleyball game and while she is trying to blend in and stay unnoticed, she obviously has to get hit in the head with a volleyball. But as she falls, Will catches her, the guy who threw the ball. Will is a volleyball player with a best friend named Scott. They have a secret that involves an accidental fire. Nobody knows except for Marcus and his crew. Marcus is a known as a “badass” and he always starts trouble. Him and his friends put on a fireball show at the carnival, and this is how they meet Ronnie. Ronnie also meets a girl called Blaze, after Ronnie spills her soda all over herself. All these characters first meet Ronnie at the carnival.

Allison- Summary The novel “The Last Song” by Nicholas Sparks is impossible to put down; I read halfway to the end of the second fifth of the book. The story starts off with Ronnie complaining about having to visit her father, her brother giving off positive vibes trying to lighten the mood, and her mother playing Ronnie’s recital music “trying” to piss her off. Very early, we learn about the relationship between Ronnie, her father, her mother, and her brother and that Ronnie doesn’t really get along with any of them. Steve, Ronnie’s father, had pushed her to be a pianist so persistently that it pushed her over the edge until she hated it so much that she quit. Then Steve left to travel with his band all over the country. But after a while the gigs stopped coming and he had to settle down, but his family wasn’t there for him to settle with. At this point, Ronnie was hanging out with the wrong crowd and getting into a lot of trouble. Steve sent her and Jonah letters, but only Jonah answered them. This book seems like its going to be really good and an easy read. Alexa- Food Jyll-Questions 1. Why does Ronnie hate her father? 2. Why does she not want to stay at her father’s home for the summer? 3. Why does Marcus start to like Ronnie instead of Blaze? 4. Why did Steve beg Will to keep quiet about the church fire? 5. Why did Ronnie quit the piano? Was it because of her father? Was she good at it? 6. Why is Ronnie visiting her father for the summer? 7. What was Jonah's reaction to this summer long trip? 8. What is known about Will at this point in the book? 9. Do you think Ronnie's friendship with Blaze will go anywhere? 10. How do you think Ronnie's summer will go with her father?

Week 2

Maria-Summary During this meeting, we mostly discussed what happened between Marcus and Ronnie. We also discussed why Blaze and Ronnie are still friends after Blaze has been such a bad friend to Ronnie. We predicted what would happen between Marcus and Ronnie, Will and Ronnie, and Blaze and Ronnie. Jyll: Theme The Last Song by Nicholas Sparks is an easy to read book and it doesn’t use any confusing words. It is very easy to understand. It is a romance novel that is directed at girls of the age of 10 and up, because it is about a love story that is similar to every other romantic story. It is a young adult book.

Allison and Alexa - Questions

1. Why did Ashley scare Ronnie? Ashley tried to scare Ronnie to keep her away from Will and to make sure that nothing got in between of her and Will getting back together. 2. Do you think that what Ashley said about Will charming all the girls in town is true? We think it was a lie because Will seems very genuine about everything and very sweet and caring. 3.What in Ronnie and her father’s relationship are keeping them together? Jonah is the main influence of Ronnie and her father becoming so close recently. Also, her father’s attempts to show that he cares have made an impact on Ronnie’s opinion of her father. An example of this is when he made Ronnie a vegetarian breakfast. 4. What in Ronnie and her father’s relationship are pulling them apart? When Steve plays the piano, Ronnie gets really angry and thinks that he is trying to get her to play with him. Also, Ronnie’s relationships with other people are forcing her to want to leave. 5. Why is Ronnie so indecisive about whether or not she likes Will? Ronnie probably can’t make up her mind about Will because she has had trust issues with men all her life. She always chooses the bad boys who she knows will never work out; therefore she’s never really taking a risk. 6. Where is this set? North Carolina, at Steve’s house along the water edge. 7. Why does Blaze set Ronnie up? What did Ronnie ever do to her? 8. What is Jonah’s opinion on Will? 9. What is Steve’s opinion on Will and Ronnie’s relationship so far? Or what he has seen of it? 10. Why is the book called “The Last Song?” 11. Why does Alexa have a creepy obsession with the scene about sea turtles? <3

Week 3 Allison- Food Alyssa- Summary As you know by now, the main character in the book, The Last Song, is Ronnie. Ronnie met a boy Will. Will is a sweetheart that really likes Ronnie. And, as she gets to know him, Ronnie likes Will too. They like each other a lot but some characters are concerned. Will's mother does now treat Ronnie with too much respect, but Ronnie's dad has taking a liking to Will. This is mostly because Will is a good influence on Ronnie. Ronnie and Will are talking about going to college near each other, but we will see what twists and turns the book takes as we keep reading!

Maria- Questions 1)What does Ronnie think of Marcus during this part of the book? 2)What is the relationship status of Ronnie and Will? 3)Are Steven and Ronnie on good terms (speaking and getting along) as of now? 4)Are Blaze and Ronnie still friends after the incident that happened with them? 5)What do Will's parents think of Ronnie? Do they like her? Jyll-Questions: 1. Why was Will’s mom not very pleased when she met Ronnie? 2. Why does Ronnie hate the piano? 3. What did Steve work as in Julliard? 4. Why does Jonah want to live with Steve? 5. Why did Blaze put those CD’s into Ronnie’s bag and frame her?

Alexa-Mood Tone

In __The Last Song__, the characters show all different types of emotions, such as happiness and sadness. The book is broken up into chapters. In each of the chapters, the characters speaks in their point of view and their view only. When Marcus is talking, the mood is mostly scary and intense. Marcus is always causing trouble and fighting with others. While Will and Ronnie are together, the mood of the story is usually constantly changing. They can go from fighting one second to being cute and flirting with each other in the next second. Overall, the book is intense and there are always dramatic situations that the characters face. This book takes you out of reality and make you feel like you are involved in the story and are in the book along side the characters. Nicolas Sparks keeps the reader always entertained by changing the emotions and moods of the book.

Week 4: Questions- Alexa and Allison 1.Why did Marcus choose Ronnie to be his target? He was upset because she wouldn't fall into his trap and she is new “bait” and different from anyone in Willmington, the town. 2. Why is wills mom so controlling? She needs to keep and eye on her kids is very protective of them because she lost her son and will never be the same again. She felt so out of control and was not able to handle the situation present, so now she is trying to control everything. 3.What are the positive actions that would result in Steve telling his children earlier that he was dying? The positives are that they would have appreciated the time with him more. Ronnie probably would have been nicer to him in the beginning and wouldn't have complaing so much. Technically, if Ronnie knew about her father's condition in the beginning of the summer, then she would have never hung out with Blaze, therefore she would not have been charged with theft and Marcus would never be in the picture. 4.What are the negative actions that would result in Steve telling his children earlier that he was dying? Ronnie would not have bet will. It is more a shock and it may be harder to separate because of the bond they formed over time. The death will have more of an effect on the children because of the sudden event and shock. 5.How does music play a role in this section of the book? In this section, the music being written is for his last song for his daughter. 6.What is the last object or structure that represents Steve's relationship with his son, Jonah. The stain glass window brought them together throughout the summer. They created it together for the new church being built that Steve “burnt down”. 7.Why do think Marcus ran away when Blaze was on fire? 8.What is Will and Ronnie's and relationship status in this part of the book? 9.How will the outcome of Steve's death effect his children? 10.Will the mother regret sending her children to spend the summer with their father?

Maria-Food

Jyll: Summary This week, we talked about how it was heartbreaking to find out that Steve has stomach cancer and he had less than a few months to live. We talked about how hard it was on Ronnie and Jonah because they found out that he was going to die soon. We also discussed how horrible it was that Blaze was abandoned by Marcus when she almost died from the fire. Another thing we discussed was how that Will's mom blamed Ronnie for ruining Megan's Wedding, but Marcus was actually the one behind it. Alyssa- Theme The theme of this book is love. This is because it pertains to most of the characters in the book. For example, it pertains to Ronnie and Will, Blaze and Marcus, and Ronnie and Jonah's mother and father. I chose love because i thought it applied that best, but there are also other themes. Some different themes that also apply to The Last Song are forgiveness and heartbreak.

Week 5 Alyssa and Maria- Questions 1. Do you think it is a good thing that Ronnie and her father ended up being very close in the end? Yes because it made it much more emotional at the end of the book. 2. Was it a good idea to have the father pass away at the end of the book? Yes and No. Yes because it made the book so much more emotional, but no because it was sad. 3. Do you think Ronnie now appreciates the fact that she was forced to spend the summer with her dad? Yes, because she became very close with him before he died. 4. Why do you think Ronnie and Will didn't end up together? I think this is because the author left the ending sort of open. 5. Do you think Blaze is better off without Marcus? Yes, because Marcus didn't like her for who she really is. Also, because he was a bad influence on her. 6. What happened at the end of the story? 7. Was this ending appropriate for this story? Why or why not? 8. What happened to Blaze towards the end of the story? Did she end up with Marcus. 9. How do you think Jonah's thoughts were at the end of the story, before and after Steve died. 10. What was, in your opinion, the most emotional part of the book? Topic- Allison: The novel The Last Song was an extremely entertaining book. Throughout the story, there were times that made me cry and times that made me laugh. Nicolas Sparks is able to make me experience various emotions during the book. I felt a connection to all the main characters in the story because of the way Sparks makes them vulnerable. I feel like I’m all of their best friend, and they tell me everything they’re thinking and feeling; I feel like I know them. My favorite part of this book was when Steve told Ronnie and Jonah about his illness. This section was very emotional and really showed the reader what a great father-daughter relationship is. I will honestly recommend this book to all of my friends, and I’m sure they would feel the same about it as I do. Summary-Alexa Today was the last day of book club and we finished up and recapped on The Last Song. The Last Song was everyone’s favorite book out of all four book clubs. We talked about relationships between daughters and fathers in books and decided that each pair of individuals have a unique relationship. We loved the book and thought it was really touching. I think our group did the best work during this book club because we were all so interested in the book. Everyone agreed that the book had an amazing ended that surprised us all. I would like to read another Nicolas Sparks book. I hope he writes another book continuing the what happens between Ronnie and Will when they meet up again on their date.