Book Review: Charlie St. Cloud by Ben Sherwood (formerly published as The Death and Life of Charlie St. Cloud)

I first heard about Charlie St. Cloud's story through a movie preview. It looked good, so when I got the chance to borrow it from my friend, I was excited. The movie was amazing. It was beautifully done and I loved it. But at the end the credits announced, "based on the book The Death and Life of Charlie St. Cloud." It's a book?! I was so excited! I had loved the movie but the book is always better. So I posted on Facebook, "Charlie St. Cloud is a beautiful movie." I got multiple comments but one was from a girl in my ward who said, "my roommate owns the book." Well about five minutes later, those two girls show up at my door to let me borrow the book. How exciting!

The book was phenomenal. And, surprisingly, the movie did a pretty good job following the book. (Now remember, this is a book review, so I won't be discussing the movie anymore.) Charlie St. Cloud is a man who can see people after they've died. He can see them when they are in the in-between state between earth and what come after. The most important person to him is his brother, Sam, who died when he was 12. Every night at sunset, they meet in the forest to play catch together. Meeting Sam at sundown is a promise Charlie will never break. But then Charlie is put in a situation where he has to decide which is more important: Sam, or using his knowledge to save someone else's life.

Charlie St. Cloud was written beautifully, and I will easily put it on my favorite books list. The point of view switches back and forth a few times, which I enjoyed because it shares the story from new perspectives. The details were done perfectly; I was able to clearly create an image in my head. I felt connected with the characters. Sam's boyish outlook on life contrasted well with Charlie's somber personality. Charlie St. Cloud was fantastic and I highly recommend it.