The Truth About Jack
by Jody Gehrman
Release Date: 04/14/15
Entangled Crush
Summary from Goodreads:
Dakota McCloud has just been accepted into a prestigious art school. Soon she'll leave behind the artists' colony where she grew up―hippie dad, tofu since birth, yurt―and join her boyfriend and best friend on the East Coast. It was the plan…until Dakota finds out her boyfriend and best friend hooked up behind her back.
Hurt and viciously betrayed, Dakota pours out her heart on a piece of paper, places it in a bottle, and hurls it into the ocean. But it doesn't quite go where she expects…
Jack Sauvage finds the bottle washed up on the shore and responds to Dakota's letter. Except what if his straight-laced life doesn’t jive with the free-spirited girl he’s only seen from afar? As Jack creates a persona he believes she’ll love, they slowly fall for each other with each new letter. Now Jack is trying to find a way to make this delicate, on-paper romance happen in real life…without revealing his deception.
Hurt and viciously betrayed, Dakota pours out her heart on a piece of paper, places it in a bottle, and hurls it into the ocean. But it doesn't quite go where she expects…
Jack Sauvage finds the bottle washed up on the shore and responds to Dakota's letter. Except what if his straight-laced life doesn’t jive with the free-spirited girl he’s only seen from afar? As Jack creates a persona he believes she’ll love, they slowly fall for each other with each new letter. Now Jack is trying to find a way to make this delicate, on-paper romance happen in real life…without revealing his deception.
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Excerpt from The Truth About Jack
Dear Dakota,
First, let me answer your questions. They’re good ones. It seems only right to start our acquaintance there.
First, let me answer your questions. They’re good ones. It seems only right to start our acquaintance there.
When it rains I inevitably think
about my best friend, a guy who ODed a few years ago. There was a big
thunderstorm the day he died. It was Sunday. I’d just finished watching a
movie— Harold
and Maude—when my mother walked in with the strangest look on her face, the
phone still in her hand. It was one of those moody days when the clouds roll in
for hours, ripe and swollen with rain. I remember after she told me, I stood
there at the window for a long time, just watching the drops hit the glass,
thinking, What a cliché—boy dies, cue storm.
Seven of my favorite words in order
(from least to most): pogo stick (does that count as one or two?); Fahrenheit;
anti-establishmentarianism; legato; whirl; gravitas; sprezzatura.
The three songs I
hate most and why: “You Light Up My Life” by Debby Boone because, seriously?
There’s never an excuse for that much cheese; “Baby” by Justin Bieber. Is this
the voice of our generation? It makes me shudder; “Aliron,” a Spanish kids’
song I associate strongly with sour milk, though I don’t really remember why.
And now a question for you: if you
could be anything in nature for just ten minutes, to investigate its internal
life, what would you be and why?
About your bottle: for several weeks
I’ve been traveling in California, and one of my cousins took me out on his
boat today. I’m originally from Barcelona, but for now I wander this vast
country, seeking adventure. When we pulled in the nets, there was your bottle,
sitting amidst the fish and seaweed. When I read your note, I knew immediately
that I had to write to you. Because
yes, I do sometimes suspect I’m the only one who feels this alone. I, too,
wonder where my “tribe” is, as you say, and when I will find them. I only hope
my letter can bring you half the comfort your magical message in a bottle
brought me.
I do not know how long I will be
traveling, but if you would like to reach me you can write to my cousin at the
address below. He will be sure I get it, wherever I am.
I sink into a
chair, stunned. My fingertips trace the thick paper. This is really happening.
He found my message. Alejandro Torres, from Barcelona! It’s almost too perfect
to believe. I feel happier than I have in ages, like gravity has no hold on me,
and I might just float up into the air. I sit there, my eyes drinking in the
pale paper and the black ink, the careful penmanship, the perfect words.
Dad appears in the doorway. His eyes
move to my letter. “So, who’s it from?”
“Oh, just something from a friend.”
For some reason I don’t want anyone to know about my message in a bottle, or
Alejandro, either. It feels too precious, too magical to expose.
“You want to sit by the fire, hang
out?”
“No, thanks.” I get up, clutching my
letter. I can’t wait to read it again. Maybe I’ll even try writing a response
tonight. “I’m super tired.”
“Okay. Well, if you change your mind...”
I give Dad a quick kiss on the
cheek. He studies me quizzically but says nothing as I head out the door. As
soon as I’m outside, I begin to run, my heart beating frantically inside me.
The cool air on my face feels like a caress, and the stars above me pulse with
magic.
On
April first, Dakota McCloud discovers her best friend and her boyfriend just
hooked up. Happy April Fools Day! They’re both slightly older, enjoying their
first year of college thousands of miles away. Dakota’s never felt so betrayed
in her life.
In
desperation, she drives to the beach and pours her heart out on paper, then
stuffs the message into a bottle and launches it into the sea. Here’s what she
writes:
Dear Whoever Finds This,
I know this probably seems weird, but I feel so alone right now, I have to reach out to someone. I guess the sea chose you. The surf is like a hungry beast today, and I really believe if I can launch my thoughts with enough force, that beast will carry my message far, far away.
I know this probably seems weird, but I feel so alone right now, I have to reach out to someone. I guess the sea chose you. The surf is like a hungry beast today, and I really believe if I can launch my thoughts with enough force, that beast will carry my message far, far away.
Maybe it will wash up on the shores of someplace not so
lonely.
Do you ever feel like the last person on earth? Do you
ever stand on a deserted beach and wonder if there’s anyone in the whole
universe who aches inside like you do? I guess that’s probably self- centered,
thinking I’m the only human being with a broken heart. Still, I can’t help but
wonder, where is everyone? Where’s my tribe, the outcasts who wander in search
of fellow misfits? I’m a jagged piece that doesn’t belong anywhere. Are there
other jagged pieces out there? Can we band together, even if we don’t exactly
match?
If you find this and it makes sense to you, please write to me. Tell me what you think about when it rains. Write down seven of your favorite words in order. List the three songs you hate most and why. Maybe we can start a conversation. Maybe we can find some comfort in a fellow creature’s pathetic yelp from across the sea.
If you find this and it makes sense to you, please write to me. Tell me what you think about when it rains. Write down seven of your favorite words in order. List the three songs you hate most and why. Maybe we can start a conversation. Maybe we can find some comfort in a fellow creature’s pathetic yelp from across the sea.
Yours,
Dakota McCloud
Dakota McCloud
It doesn’t go far. Jack
Sauvage finds it washed up on the beach just minutes after she tossed it out to
sea. The second he reads her words he knows he has to meet her.
The question is, how?
Character Profile: Jack Sauvage
Age: 18
Hometown: Geyserville,
California
Likes: Moody
music, storms, butterscotch.
Hates: Hypocrisy,
hipsters, vapid pop music, Catholic school uniforms.
Quirks: There’s
this one place at the back of his head where the hair always stands up funny;
he’s very self-conscious about it.
The Three Songs He Hates Most and Why:
“You Light Up My Life” by Debby Boone because, seriously? There’s never an
excuse for that much cheese; “Baby” by Justin Bieber. Is this the voice of his
generation? It makes him shudder; “Aliron,” a Spanish kids’ song he associates
strongly with sour milk, though he doesn’t remember why.
Formative Growing-up Factors: Jack’s mother is extremely overprotective. Jack’s
uncle died in a car accident a couple decades ago, and ever since his mom’s
been paranoid about anyone she loves hitting the road. As a result, Jack’s the
only person in his hometown with a full time chauffeur. Well, Attila used to be
a part-time tutor, part-time chauffeur, before Jack got into Julliard. Now that
the academic pressures’ off, he doesn’t need a tutor, so voila! Attila became
his full time driver. It’s both a luxury and a source of extreme embarrassment,
according to Jack.
Jack’s Passion: Sometimes Jack can lose himself entirely in his music. He plays piano,
has since he was little. On his best days he delves so deeply into the notes he
can feel each chord vibrating inside his chest, like he’s not just playing
music--he is the music. He’s the
moody smokiness of Rachmaninoff and the soft pastels of Chopin. This is what he
lives for, this total surrender to the moment, when he’s so lost in the notes
he forgets his own name.
Character Profile: Dakota McCloud
Age: 17
Hometown: Luna
Cove, California
Likes: Raspberry
scones, chai, the ocean, sculptures made of recycled junk.
Hates: Betrayal,
bad art, Internet trolls, biscotti.
Quirks:
She’s obsessed with Barcelona. She likes hanging out in junkyards, scavenging
materials for her sculptures. She’s never owned a TV.
Dakota’s
Passion: Growing up in
Luna Cove, the artist colony her parents founded, Dakota’s always been immersed
in art. She started painting as a kid, covering mailboxes and rocks with
mermaids, fairies, and gargoyles. Soon, though, she progressed to
three-dimensional art--sculptures made from found objects. When she’s working
on a sculpture, she loses all sense of time. Her awareness narrows, eclipsing
everything around her. She wants to take the stuff nobody wants anymore and
transform it into beauty--that’s what she sees as her purpose here on earth.
Dakota’s
Secret: Her mom left
five years ago, and she’s never really gotten over it. Her dad’s
awesome--supportive, warm, smart--but she finds it hard to talk to him about
the gaping hole her mom left behind when she moved out. These days Dakota gets
the occasional generic group text from her mother, which really stings. Her mom
left Luna Cove with the guy who would become her next husband and completely
transformed herself from hippie extraordinaire to SUV-driving
southerner.
About the Author
Jody Gehrman is a native of Northern California, where she can be found writing, teaching, reading, or obsessing over her three cats most days. She is also the author of ten novels and numerous award-winning plays. Her Young Adult novels include The Truth About Jack, Audrey's Guide to Black Magic, Audrey's Guide to Witchcraft, Babe in Boyland, Confessions of a Triple Shot Betty, and Triple Shot Bettys in Love. Babe in Boyland was optioned by the Disney Channel and won the International Reading Association's Teen Choice Award. Her adult novels are Bombshell, Notes from the Backseat, Tart, and Summer in the Land of Skin. Her plays have been produced in Ashland, New York, San Francisco, Chicago and L.A. She and her partner David Wolf won the New Generation Playwrights Award for their one-act, Jake Savage, Jungle P.I. She is a professor of English and Communication Studies at Mendocino College.
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