Keeping the Moon (2004) (edit title/settings)

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• Nicole "Colie" Sparks: The protagonist of the novel. She is an insecure 15-year-old girl who used to be fat. When her mother became a famous exercise guru, she shed off her weight, but not her insecurity. Her mom ships her off to her aunt’s house in Colby, NC for the summer, and the relationships and connections that she makes there help her realize that she is actually worth something, and help her gain self-confidence.
• Norman Norman: Norman is an "art freak." His father doesn't support the idea of him being an artist, so this resulted in fights.Norman moved out of the house when he was 17. He works with Morgan, Isabel, and Colie at Last Chance as a cook. He has a small crush on Colie and collects sunglasses. He has a whole series of paintings that have sunglasses.Norman is shy and kind. He lives with Mira and Colie because he has nowhere to go.
• Mira Sparks: Mira is Colie's aunt. She is overweight and very kind. She makes cards that are for people that have lost their loved ones. She buys a lot of sugared cereal and enjoys eating the grilled chicken salad at Last Chance. Mira is also friends with Morgan and Isabel. She lives with Norman and Colie and has a cat named Cat Norman (named after Norman).
• Kiki Sparks: Colie's mom. She is a workout guru and has made her living off of her workout videos.
• Isabel: Isabel works at Last Chance with Morgan, Colie, and Norman. It is stated that lots of boys flirt with and hit on her. Isabel is very lazy and reads Vogue in her free time. She is best friends and roommates with Morgan. Isabel acts grumpy around Colie and is very judgemental.
• Morgan: One of Colie's new friends. She has a fiance named Mark who she never sees because he is on a minor league baseball team. Works with Norman, Isabel, and Colie at the Last Chance diner. Isabel is her roommate, and best friend.
• Mark: Morgan's fiance. He plays on a minor league baseball team.
• Caroline Dawes: A mean girl from where Colie is from. She is the classic mean girl that loves to make fun of people, especially Colie.
• Josh: Caroline Dawes' cousin
• Bea Williamson: A woman with a baby who has a very large cranium; she seems to have some grudge against Mira.
• Chase Mercer: A new boy in town who Colie meets at golf course.

Quotes edit see section history

• “And when someone does, you pout and cry like you didn't deserve it”

• “You walk around like a dog waiting to be kicked”

• “There's something about dancing that's like being stripped naked; you have to be self-confident to thrash around in public, deliberately attracting attention.”

  Colie Sparks

• “I don't believe in failure, Because by simply saying you've failed, you've admitted you attempted. And anyone who attempts is not a failure. Those who fail in my eyes are those who never attempt at all.”

  Kiki Sparks

• “You believed you were beautiful and so did the rest of the world. It's true. It's like a hidden secret no one tells you. We can all be beautiful girls, Colie. It's so easy. It's like Dorothy clicking her heels to go home. You could do it all along.”

  Isabel

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• “Because simply by saying you’ve failed, you’ve admitted you attempted. And anyone who attempts is not a failure. Those who truly fail in my eyes are the ones who never try at all. The ones who sit on the couch and whine and moan and wait for the world to change for them.”

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• Everything, and everyone, had its purpose. The rest of the world, too often, might have missed that.

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• “I’ve always known who I am. I might not work perfectly, or be like them, but that’s okay. I know I work in my own way.”

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• it is so hard, in any life, to believe in what you can’t fully understand.

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• There’s something about dancing that’s like being stripped naked; you have to be very self-confident to thrash around in public, deliberately attracting attention.

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• “It can,” she went on, plopping another scoop into the bowl, “make everything much better, adding flavor and ease to your life. Or, it can just be sticky and gross and make you nauseous.”

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• “If you try anything,” my mother went on, her voice building, “if you try to lose weight, or to improve yourself, or to love, or to make the world a better place, you have already achieved something wonderful, before you even begin. Forget failure. If things don’t work out the way you want, hold your head up high and be proud. And try again. And again. And again!”

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• Believe in yourself up here and it will make you stronger than you could ever imagine. And my mother’s words: Being self-confident doesn’t necessarily start inside. It starts with the rest of the world, and leads back to you.

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• “I was saying,” Norman said, looking outside, “that they took the moon. They were keeping the moon.”

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• “Men,” Isabel said, after pausing to suck down some beer, “are wired, by nature, to take everything they can from you. It is their basic instinct to screw you over.” “Really.” “Yes,” she said solidly. Then she leaned closer. “If you think that girl from the restaurant yesterday can hurt you, you just wait. All the bitchy girls in the world are just a training ground for what men can do to you.”

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Setting & Locations edit see section history

• Last Chance Diner
• Quik Stop

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Authors & Contributors edit see section history

1. Sarah Dessen (Author)

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Notes for Parents edit see section history

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Subjects edit see section history

• Books › Teens › Authors, A-Z › ( D ) › Dessen, Sarah
• Books › Teens › Social Issues › Being a Teen
• Books › Teens › Literature & Fiction

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