Book Review for The Simple Soul of Susan by Noel Branham
The Simple Soul of Susan, by Noel Branham, is a heartwarming story about two teenagers who struggle with their emotions before finally finding their own happy ending.
Susan Combs is a young woman in high school who has fallen in love with her best friend; Calder Hurtz. However, because of how perfect he seems, and how plain she is, Susan doesn’t confess her feelings. But with the constant attention Calder gets from other girls, and what appears to be Calder’s own feelings, Susan soon casts the thoughts aside, only to attract the attention of the town’s bad boy, John. As time goes on, Susan and Calder both realize they can’t stay the same forever, and neither can their relationship. Branham weaves an endearing Southern romance about how hard young love can be, and why, no matter hard it may seem, everyone needs to move on with their life.
I found Susan incredibly memorable. Despite everyone calling her plain and unambitious, Susan was a kindhearted girl who did everything she could to take care of her family. She displayed a level of maturity that couldn’t be found anywhere else in the book; from taking care of her father, to helping her childhood friend’s mother, to even spending time with the ladies in the nursing home, throughout the entire novel, I kept thinking of how she deserved better. And then there was Calder, a boy who reacted so impulsively I wasn’t even sure I wanted Susan to be with him. I was just so protective of her.Calder I almost preferred John, but when he left for college, he matured in a way that was, at the very least, on parr with Susan. Despite their relationship being just a tad bit cheesy, the ending was still satisfying nonetheless.
It was a small town romance, but there was a magical realism to it. It and all the aspects of a high school romance, but at the same time, it also deals with the tough subjects about end of life, and love, and family. The fact that Susan didn’t want her father to be alone was noble of her, because she didn’t want to be left alone to the whims of the world. At the same time, her reasoning for why she didn’t want them to be forgotten was insightful. After all, everyone wants to think about the youth of their lives, of when they once perceived themselves to be important. But despite everything, death still lingers, and the fact that Susan knew they just wanted to make more of an impact on other people before finally dying is something to be said about her own character. Even Calder got on my nerves at times, what with his treatment of her. Still, in the end, even he recognized this importance.
The Simple Soul of Susan was rather a refreshing read. There was an essence of magic found within each of the words, despite the fact that it seemed simple on the outside. There were so many elements revolving around a high school romance, and one that I particularly loved. As such, I would give this book a rating of a 4.5 out of 5.0 stars, and would recommend it to fans such as Summer Seventeen and You by Sara Daniell and The Royal Teashop series by Ginny Clyde.
