Book Review: "100 Days of Sunlight"

 ******SPOILERS INCLUDED******

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/45431240-100-days-of-sunlight 

"100 Days of Sunlight" is a cute, feel-good story that reminds readers of what truly matters in a relationship - something far greater than appearances or physical abilities. I've followed Abbie on YouTube for a long time (WritersLife Wednesdays!) and I loved recognizing the unique touches in her writing from her (extremely helpful!) videos. Abbie is a very talented writer, and this book shows her understanding of not only writing composition, but also of complicated and important issues in a world where we often put too much emphasis on the seen and not enough on the unseen. That being said, I will now explain a few things I loved about this book. 

1. The family dynamics. Too often in romantic books/movies/shows/etc., I become frustrated because the characters seem to have no real relationships outside of the love interest. This was not the case in "100 Days of Sunlight". For that reason, this book was a breath of fresh air. Weston was very close to his mom, dad, brothers, and best friend. Abbie used those relationships consistently throughout the book (as opposed to vague mentions of them now and again, as some books that try to incorporate family often do). Weston's best friend, Rudy, plays a key role in his healing and background from the very beginning and then is used as the instigator for Weston's ultimate character arc near the end of the book. For this, I give Abbie a huge congratulations. The "best friend" in many stories is often superfluous, rarely mentioned, cliché, or is only brought in for that "one important moment" near the end - not in "100 Days of Sunlight"! I believe Abbie nailed it by making Rudy a CONSISTENT aspect of the plot. The same is true for the presence of Weston's family. His parents are mentioned often and in a positive light (why are parents so often cut out of stories altogether or brought in for negative interactions??). His mom is mentioned more than his dad, but both are key motivators of Weston's character arc. Also, Weston's three brothers and his role as the eldest were wisely used to develop him and explain one aspect of hid need to persevere and be a "superhero". Though Tessa's parents were both absent and she was raised by her grandparents, this was a useful contrast (speaking merely as a writer here) to Weston's family dynamic and helped differentiate between the two and their experiences/background. In addition, the interactions between Tessa and her grandparents were realistic, especially the firm-but-gentle conversations at the beginning. Overall, the family dynamics of both Tessa and Weston were realistic, consistent, and instrumental to the plot. 

2. Weston's character development. I'm usually opposed to flashbacks (a personal preference), as they're often scattered and only used to explain a specific aspect of the story, and they're never in enough detail for me to get the full picture of a character's background (I'm always either craving more information or irritated because I really didn't care about whatever the flashback was trying to tell me). However, this was entirely different in "100 Days of Sunlight". In this book, the flashbacks were used consistently and with plenty of detail that was actually quite important for Weston's character development, as well as for explaining in more depth his relationships with his family and friends. Weston's character development was neatly and skillfully constructed. He begins as a reckless, foolhardy daredevil, without a clear path or reason for being such. However, after his accident, he transforms into a driven, persistent character with a determination to remain optimistic no matter what life throws at him, and that characteristic becomes his theme. He also develops in his wisdom, eventually cutting himself off from a girl who had previously liked him merely for external features. However, throughout the book, one key flaw plagues him - his own self-image. Yet, at the end of the book, he is finally able to overcome that, by use of his best friend and the bravery that he was constantly proving throughout the story. Needless to say, his character arc was very satisfying (and I could certainly recognize the 'key moments' from Abbie's story structure outline!). 

3. Tessa's character development. Tessa's character development was a little more obvious, as she grew to overcome her sense of embarrassment, fears, and anger, but I especially liked the small aspects of this. My favorite part about her character arc was the difference in her attitude toward her grandparents (the difference in her attitude toward Weston was very obvious). At the beginning, she easily flies into a rage and throws a mini self-absorbed tantrum. However, at the end, she apologizes to her grandparents for her behavior (I also loved this part for, once again, emphasizing her relationship with them). While one could argue that Tessa's initial rage was righteous anger over a situation she couldn't control, Weston's speech in his class proves the opposite, and a lesson that each of us today could certainly use - we are each incredibly blessed and it is better, though harder, to focus on the good and what we have than to give in to despair and anger over what we lack. 

4. Religion. Religion in one of those topics that is rarely brought up in books that are not explicitly focused on it, or that do not have it as a part of the plot. "100 Days of Sunlight" is different, and refreshingly so. Tessa's grandfather is a pastor at a local church and the church, and God, are present not just as aspects of the plot ("going back to church" is something that Tessa has to work up the courage to do), but are consistently mentioned. Tessa says that she makes friends online, or in the church (due to Tessa being homeschooled - btw, this was also a nice addition to the story to add yet another differentiating aspect between her and Weston; besides, having been homeschooled myself, it was nice to see it mentioned, though my version of homeschooling was rather different). 

5. Dialogue/description balance. This is more a technical matter, but an important one. It is hard to find a book that I don't get bored with too much description or disoriented with too much dialogue. Abbie struck a nice balance here. 

6. Timing of the plot. This was handled artistically. The 100 days that the book spanned did not drive the plot into boredom or monotony, but was rather kept at a nice pace. At one point near the end, I realized how much time was passing in the plot (about 30 days since I'd last paid attention to it), but the flow of the plot was maintained. Abbie did not write about every single day of those 100, nor about every single time Weston came to visit Tessa - those occurrences were simply understood. Yet, the plot was not at a fast pace, either. It was balanced between explaining the important scenes and not dwelling on the monotony that would have dragged the plot down. At the same time, this timing of present-day was interwoven with the flashbacks that occurred about every two chapters, on average. I was impressed that Abbie was able to balance the pace of present-day (while skipping over chunks of time) with the lengthy flashbacks. 

Overall, I loved "100 Days of Sunlight". I read it in three days and loved every bit of it - the plot, the settings, the characters, everything! Abbie put an incredible amount of dedication into this book, and I applaud her for it. Rock on, Abbie!