Shelby Phelan

Shelby Phelan
A Bend in the Road
Nicholas Sparks
Romance Fiction
Just Right
Page 20

1. In my book right now, Miles Ryan is thinking about how his son, Jonah, is having trouble in school. His wife, Missy, died a few years previous to the start of the book, and he misses her terribly. He feels he is doing a horrible job as a parent because he thinks that Missy would have known about Jonah's acedemic troubles long before he found out by a note from Sarah Andrew's, Jonah's school teacher. Darah teaches second grade at the local elemantary school, and moved to New Bern a few months ago after finalizing her divorce with her ex-husband Michael. Sarah and Miles are scheduled to meet later on that day to discuss the problems Jonah is having in class.

2. I am liking this book so far, but I don't think I am far enough into it to really know yet. It seems to be very similar to the last Nicholas Sparks book I read, Message in a Bottle. In that book, the main characters were a woman who was recently divorced, and a man who's wife had died by being hit by a car. In that book, it is the woan who has a son, and in this one, it is Miles. I think that this book is really sad allready, and that it talks about a lot of the problems that single and widowed parents face on a daily basis, and it helps you better understand the hurt people experience at the death of a loved one.

3. The theme I have noticed in this book so far is loss. Miles lost his wife, Jonah lost his mother, and Sarah got a divorce from her husband. These are the only three characters that have so far been introduced into the plot, which shows that a lot of this book is going to be about people trying to get over their feelings and move on. I think that it's really beautiful for people to be able to love someone even after that person has passed, but also think it is important for people to be able to cope with their loss in ways that are for the good of themselves and others so that eventually they can move on and lead a happy life. Miles has the most loss of all, because his wife was so important to him, and they had known eachother all their lives. Jonah was only five at the time of his mother's death, so his loss is still great, but he nevere got to know Missy the way his father did. In th book, it says he has had horrible nightmares since the accident, and he is having a very tough time dealing with this loss although he is young and does not know as well what a mother means in a childs life.

4. My favorite character is Jonah because he is a very sweet little kid who has had to go through more than any kid should ever have to. I feel really bad for him because he is getting horrible nightmares that were triggered by his mother's death. As I am only twenty pages into the book, these are the only other things I know about Jonah other than that he is having problems with school. He said to his dad that he was trying as hard as he possibly could, but the material was too hard, and he couldnt't concentrate in it or understand what the teacher talks about.

5. My least favorite character is Michael, Sarah's ex-husband. He is my least favorite because he put on an act and pretended he loved her for three years while he was only using her. Before they got married, he had her sign a contract, but I have not yet read about what was in it. It is implied that Michael's family is the snobby, filthy rich type, who are ashamed of Michael for marrying who he did. Because of this, I think that the contract had something to do with money, and also that Sarah didn't knwo what she was getting into by signing it.

6. I think that Sarah and Miles will fall in love when they meet eachother at Jonah's conference. I think that Miles will be very hesitant at forming a relationship after all he has beent though, but Sarah will be eager to make it work, as her last did not. I think that one of them will probably die, because that i what has happened in most of the books I have read by Nicholas Sparks. I have found he is a bit predictable as an author, but I still like his books.