OUTLINE FOR CRITICAL ESSAY

I. Background Information
o A. Information about the novel
 1. True Believer
 2. Author
Nicholas Sparks is one of the world’s most beloved storytellers. All of
his books have been New York Times bestsellers, with over 105
million copies sold worldwide, in more than 50 languages, including
over 75 million copies in the United States alone. His novels include
seven #1 New York Times bestsellers, and all his books, including
Three weeks with my Brother, the memoir he wrote with his brother,
Micah, have been New York Times and international bestsellers, and
were translated into more than 30 languages. Three of Nicholas
Sparks’ novels –-Message in a Bottle, A Walk to Remember, and the
Notebook—were also adopted into major motion pictures. The author
lives in North Carolina with his wife and family.
 3. Publication information
It was published in 2005 by Grand Central Publishing in New York,
USA.
 4. Statement of topic and purpose
A statement of topic and purpose summarizes the specific topic and
goals of a document. It is typically included in the introduction to give
the reader an accurate, concrete understanding what the document will
cover and what he/she can gain from reading it. To be effective, a
statement of purpose should be: Specific and precise - not general,
broad or obscure Concise - (in your case) three to five sentences Clear
- not vague, ambiguous or confusing Goal-oriented - stated in terms of
desired outcomes Some common introductory phrases for purpose
statements include: "The purpose of this paper/letter/document is to..."
"In this paper, I will describe/explain/review/etc. the..." "My reason for
writing is to..." "This paper will discuss the..." "The purpose of this
paper is twofold: to _ and _"

o B. Thesis Statements found in the novel (minimum of 5 TS) (1-3 sentences)

 Chapter 1: Jeremy Marsh is watching a show which he is planning to
debunk, he even participated in the act in order to get evidence. Three
weeks later, after exposing Timothy Clausen, Nate, Jeremy’s agent,
and Alvin, a freelance cameraman, gathered at the bar to celebrate
Jeremy’s appearance on ABC’s Primetime Live because ever since
then, most of the commercials featured Jeremy and the promise of a
major expose. And in trying to find the next big thing, he’s going to
investigate the mysterious lights in the cemetery in Bone Creek, North
Carolina.
 Chapter 2: Jeremy arrived in North Carolina, and while driving, he
can’t help but to think about his ex-wife Maria; remembering his big
dream and how it was still out there, he recall the letter that was sent to
her about the mysterious lights in the cemetery and went there. As he
was walking around, he saw a woman walking toward him; he tried
calling her yet the woman is intentionally ignoring her, she was clearly
wasn’t interested in him. Jeremy left the cemetery with the woman in
mind and his curiosity with why she’s there.
 Chapter 3: Jeremy went to Herbs and there he met Doris McClellan,
the person who wrote the letter. Doris told him about the legend of the
 Cedar Creek and even her psychic ability and he clearly doesn’t
believe any of such things. Doris told Jeremy that one day he’s going
to learn something that can’t be explained with science and it will
change his life; Jeremy only smiled at her.
 Chapter 4: Jeremy went to the library and Lexie doesn’t like it, she
doesn’t like the fact that a stranger who wanted to write a story that
just might not be good for her people is waiting for her. Lexie and
Jeremy met, and Lexie as the owner of the library, tour him around it
and gave him the books he needed.
 Chapter 5: As Jeremy was about to checked in, the mayor of the town
showed up showing great interest in him. Across the town, Lexie was
with her grandmother, Doris, having dinner and talking about Jeremy.
Doris said that there’s more to him than Lexie think there is, and Lexie
knew her grandmother sensed things, she always sensed the truth.
 Chapter 6: The next day, Jeremy went to Herbs to get breakfast and
there he met Deputy Rodney Hooper and Mayor Gherkins; recovering
from what was supposed to have been a leisurely breakfast, he went to
the library. Lexie found her mind wandering back to Jeremy; she
didn’t want to think about him, but Doris said just enough to pique her
curiosity. As they spoke, he noticed that she held his gaze just a little
longer than usual, and he like that, he liked that a lot.
 Chapter 7: Jeremy spent the rest of the morning reading books and
articles and found nothing. Between his readings, Lexie and Jeremy
get to talk about personal things and even went to a hill together. They
talked about life, live and light; and he was surprised that Lexie knew
about the mysterious lights.
 Chapter 8: Deputy Rodney Hooper’s been wondering where Lexie and
Jeremy had gone off to and on the other side, Mayor Gherkin told
Doris to be the caterer for the party that will happen that night for
Jeremy. Jeremy invited Lexie to the dinner and even with the
reputation that Lexie doesn’t attend such things, she said yes. At that
moment, all of a sudden, the story and the opportunity for television
were nothing more than minor details.
 Chapter 9: Later that evening, when Jeremy and Lexie arrived
together, Deputy Rodney was clearly hurt and Rachel (Lexie’s
bestfriend), who likes him tried approaching him. As soon as they
went inside, Jeremy didn’t relax for the next three hours but as she was
looking at Lexie she realized that she had a genuine affection for the
people there. As Lexie was moving toward her, there was a moment,
where the scene seemed as if it was in the present.
 Chapter 10: Jeremy and Lexi went to the cemetery to see the
mysterious light and he couldn’t believe that something actually
seemed to be happening. He watched as the fog in front of them grew
more silver, before changing to pale yellow, then an opaque white, and
finally an almost blinding brightness.
 Chapter 11: Jeremy called Nate the next day, and they talked about the
plan about the lights and how they should shoot it. Despite all the
things he had to do to investigate the lights, he regretted his behavior
of wanting to kiss Lexie the night before because now, Lexie’s
avoiding him.
 Chapter 12: As Alvin’s about to go to North Carolina, Jeremy’s unsure
of his feelings about Lexie and if it couldn’t be love and it didn’t feel
like lust either, then what could be it? Lexie’s still avoiding him and he
 didn’t want everything to end like this between them, but he hadn’t
spent the last fifteen years using logic without learning something.
Now all he had to do is pack.
 Chapter 13: Lexie run away, and she’s very much confused; she woke
up the morning after they went to the cemetery to end things before
they went too far. Jeremy remembered the lighthouse Lexie told him
when they were in the hills, and realizing she might be there, he was
going there to find out if Alvin had been right al along.
 Chapter 14: Jeremy wasn’t sure if Lexie will be back, and if he wanted
to see her, the best option was to come to her and that’s what he
exactly did. With no place to stay, Lexie invited him to the cottage
where she’s staying and they are both aware of how dangerous this can
be for the both of them
 Chapter 15: Jeremy told Lexie the story of Maria and Lexie told him
the story of her past too; there he realized that in his heart, he found
the woman whom he wanted to spend the rest of his life with. As if
everything’s going smoothly between them, Lexie pointed something
at Doris’ notebook of baby’s gender she guessed correctly, and asked
Jeremy if he knew who it was. Confused, Jeremy said no and that
when Lexie realized that they didn’t know each other and what bothers
her is maybe they never will.
 Chapter 16: Alvin arrived in the town, and Rodney’s hurt by the fact
that Lexie and Jeremy were together. More to this, Lexie’s avoiding
Jeremy once again, and Jeremy doesn’t know why. Doris asked Lexie
and she told her that this is something she have to figure out on her
own.
 Chapter 17: Jeremy read the last journal, and from this he noticed that
it was solved all along; solved by Owen Gherkin, the mayor’s father.
With this, he thought that everyone knew the answer, and all along
they were playing a joke on him to make a buck from unsuspecting
visitors. Jeremy got mad; he and Lexie fought; hidden feelings were
poured and Lexie finally get to say how everything’s okay until he
came.
 Chapter 18: Jeremy’s sure that the light came from trains but he
knows that the story is not enough for television. In order to get the
producer’s attention, adding the story of the mayor’s scam will make
the mystery more interesting; but this also means never talking to
Lexie again. This put him in a situation where she get to choose
between two important things in his life: Lexie or his dream.
 Chapter 19: As he was about to leave cottage where he stayed, Mayor
Gherkins showed up and claimed all the blame. Lexie also came to
check on him and Jeremy confessed to Lexie, saying he loves her
because he wants her to want to make their relationship work He was
shocked when Lexie say they can’t and that’s because she’s marrying
Rodney.
 Chapter 20: Jeremy went back to New York and he knew that his time
to make his decision finally run out. At the end, he chose to keep the
diary to himself. Jeremy called Mayor Gherkins and offer him a
proposal; he’ll keep his secret in return of the Mayor stopping all the
promise in the town the chance to see a ghosts.
 Chapter 21: Little by little, Jeremy was getting himself back on the
track until one day, Doris came to see him. Doris told him how Lexie’s
been doing and how she was very miserable on her own; she also told
 him the truth about Rodney and how she only said it because she
wants to push him away. Doris also said that Lexie loves him and she
came to see if he were in love with her too.
 Chapter 22: As soon as they arrived in North Carolina, he immediately
went to find Lexie and he found her in the cemetery where they first
met. Lexi realized Doris had been right, he was home. Jeremy kissed
her, knowing that he would never leave her again.
 Epilogue: Lexie and Jeremy apologized to each other, talked about
staying there and visiting New York sometimes. Lexie got pregnant,
even though a doctor told him that he is not capable, and Jeremy
Marsh, who loves debunking supernatural, believes that Lexie is his
miracle.
II. Summary of the novel (700-120 words of your own only)

Jeremy Marsh is watching a show which he is planning to debunk, he even participated in the act
in order to get evidence. Three weeks later, after exposing Timothy Clausen, Nate, Jeremy’s
agent, and Alvin, a freelance cameraman, gathered at the bar to celebrate Jeremy’s appearance on
ABC’s Primetime Live because ever since then, most of the commercials featured Jeremy and
the promise of a major expose. And in trying to find the next big thing, he’s going to investigate
the mysterious lights in the cemetery in Boone Creek, North Carolina. Jeremy arrived in North
Carolina, and while driving, he can’t help but to think about his ex-wife Maria; remembering his
big dream and how it was still out there, he recall the letter that was sent to her about the
mysterious lights in the cemetery and went there. As he was walking around, he saw a woman
walking toward him; he tried calling her yet the woman is intentionally ignoring her, she was
clearly wasn’t interested in him. Jeremy left the cemetery with the woman in mind and his
curiosity with why she’s there. He went to Herbs and there he met Doris McClellan, the person
who wrote the letter. Doris told him about the legend of the Cedar Creek and even her psychic
ability and he clearly doesn’t believe any of such things. Doris told Jeremy that one day he’s
going to learn something that can’t be explained with science and it will change his life; Jeremy
only smiled at her.
Jeremy went to the library and Lexie Darnell doesn’t like it, she doesn’t like the fact that a
stranger who wanted to write a story that just might not be good for her people is waiting for her.
Lexie and Jeremy met; Jeremy was surprised that he found the girl in the cemetery; and Lexie,
although he hate his presence, as the owner of the library, tour him around it and gave him the
books he needed. As Jeremy was about to checked in, the mayor of the town showed up showing
great interest in him. Across the town, Lexie was with her grandmother, Doris, having dinner and
talking about Jeremy. Doris said that there’s more to him than Lexie think there is, and Lexie
knew her grandmother sensed things, she always sensed the truth. The next day, Jeremy went to
Herbs to get breakfast and there he met Deputy Rodney Hooper and Mayor Gherkins; recovering
from what was supposed to have been a leisurely breakfast, he went to the library. Lexie found
her mind wandering back to Jeremy; she didn’t want to think about him, but Doris said just
enough to pique her curiosity. As they spoke, he noticed that she held his gaze just a little longer
than usual, and he like that, he liked that a lot. Jeremy spent the rest of the morning reading
books and articles and found nothing. Between his readings, Lexie and Jeremy get to talk about
personal things and even went to a hill together. They talked about life, live and light; and he was
surprised that Lexie knew about the mysterious lights. Deputy Rodney Hooper’s been wondering
where Lexie and Jeremy had gone off to and on the other side, Mayor Gherkin told Doris to be
the caterer for the party that will happen that night for Jeremy. Jeremy invited Lexie to the dinner
and even with the reputation that Lexie doesn’t attend such things, she said yes. At that moment,
all of a sudden, the story and the opportunity for television were nothing more than minor details.
Later that evening, when Jeremy and Lexie arrived together, Deputy Rodney was clearly hurt and
Rachel (Lexie’s bestfriend), who likes him tried approaching him. As soon as they went inside,
Jeremy didn’t relax for the next three hours but as she was looking at Lexie she realized that she
had a genuine affection for the people there. As Lexie was moving toward her, there was a
moment, where the scene seemed as if it was in the present. Jeremy and Lexi went to the
cemetery to see the mysterious light and he couldn’t believe that something actually seemed to
be happening. He watched as the fog in front of them grew more silver, before changing to pale
yellow, then an opaque white, and finally an almost blinding brightness. Jeremy called Nate the
next day, and they talked about the plan about the lights and how they should shoot it.
Despite all the things he had to do to investigate the lights, he regretted his behavior of wanting
to kiss Lexie the night before because now, Lexie’s avoiding him. As Alvin’s about to go to
North Carolina, Jeremy’s unsure of his feelings about Lexie and if it couldn’t be love and it
didn’t feel like lust either, then what could be it? Lexie’s still avoiding him and he didn’t want
everything to end like this between them, but he hadn’t spent the last fifteen years using logic
without learning something. Now all he had to do is pack. Lexie run away, and she’s very much
confused; she woke up the morning after they went to the cemetery to end things before they
went too far. Jeremy remembered the lighthouse Lexie told him when they were in the hills, and
realizing she might be there, he was going there to find out if Alvin had been right all along.
Jeremy wasn’t sure if Lexie will be back, and if he wanted to see her, the best option was to
come to her and that’s what he exactly did. With no place to stay, Lexie invited him to the cottage
where she’s staying and they are both aware of how dangerous this can be for the both of them.
Jeremy told Lexie the story of Maria and Lexie told him the story of her past too; there he
realized that in his heart, he found the woman whom he wanted to spend the rest of his life with.
As if everything’s going smoothly between them, Lexie pointed something at Doris’ notebook of
baby’s gender she guessed correctly, and asked Jeremy if he knew who it was. Confused, Jeremy
said no and that when Lexie realized that they didn’t know each other and what bothers her is
maybe they never will. Alvin arrived in the town, and Rodney’s hurt by the fact that Lexie and
Jeremy were together. More to this, Lexie’s avoiding Jeremy once again, and Jeremy doesn’t
know why. Doris asked Lexie and she told her that this is something she have to figure out on her
own.
Jeremy read the last journal, and from this he noticed that it was solved all along; solved by
Owen Gherkin, the mayor’s father. With this, he thought that everyone knew the answer, and all
along they were playing a joke on him to make a buck from unsuspecting visitors. Jeremy got
mad; he and Lexie fought; hidden feelings were poured and Lexie finally get to say how
everything’s okay until he came. Jeremy’s sure that the light came from trains but he knows that
the story is not enough for television. In order to get the producer’s attention, adding the story of
the mayor’s scam will make the mystery more interesting; but this also means never talking to
Lexie again. This put him in a situation where she get to choose between two important things in
his life: Lexie or his dream. As he was about to leave cottage where he stayed, Mayor Gherkins
showed up and claimed all the blame. Lexie also came to check on him and Jeremy confessed to
Lexie, saying he loves her because he wants her to want to make their relationship work He was
shocked when Lexie say they can’t and that’s because she’s marrying Rodney. Jeremy went back
to New York and he knew that his time to make his decision finally run out. At the end, he chose
to keep the diary to himself. Jeremy called Mayor Gherkins and offer him a proposal; he’ll keep
his secret in return of the Mayor stopping all the promise in the town the chance to see a ghosts.
Little by little, Jeremy was getting himself back on the track until one day, Doris came to see
him. Doris told him how Lexie’s been doing and how she was very miserable on her own; she
also told him the truth about Rodney and how she only said it because she wants to push him
away. Doris also said that Lexie loves him and she came to see if he were in love with her too.
As soon as they arrived in North Carolina, he immediately went to find Lexie and he found her
in the cemetery where they first met. Lexi realized Doris had been right, he was home. Jeremy
kissed her, knowing that he would never leave her again.
 Lexie and Jeremy apologized to each other, talked about staying there and visiting New York
sometimes. Lexie got pregnant, even though a doctor told him that he is not capable. Jeremy
Marsh, who loves debunking supernatural, believes that Lexie is his miracle.

III. Interpretation and evaluation

o A. Author’s purpose (to entertain, to inform, etc.)
The purpose of the author in the novel is to entertain. Nicholas Sparks is a
famous author, known for its novels’ roller-coaster ride of emotions. He
showed his writing style and how he play with the emotions of the readers
through this novel.
Jeremy Marsh is a very playful guy but deep down him, there’s a story
waiting to be told. As for Lexie, she’s a woman who’s been hurt several times
by her past yet she always put a strong front to show everybody that she’s
okay. The readers can feel the sadness and the loneliness. These certain parts
of the novel, tugs the heart of the readers, because this just shows how each of
the characters true feelings, behind what we saw beneath them.
More to this, this novel also play with our minds and curiosity because it
leaves us thinking of the truth about the lights. Though it is explained in the
end, there are times where the readers would certainly feel the real reasons
behind that as soon as possible.
o B. Effectiveness
According to Nicholas Sparks, he aim
o C. Discussion of the topic’s themes

o D. What are its strengths and weaknesses

One common happenings in every Sparks’ story is the time of events in
the novel. True Believer exhibit a story that is well balanced in terms of plot
and characters. The characters’ has each of their own stories that are
independent from one another. This balances the plot out and made it more
interesting because of their conflicting ideas. The only weakness there is, is
the time spent for it to be realistic. Despite the good plot and characters, the
story revolves around 2-3 days only and reading how their love story progress
may be too much for it last for only a couple of days. More to this, despite the
fast happening between the main characters; its story line was actually too
slow. As much as the story is good, the time may have given it the unrealistic
approach for the readers.
o E. What is the overall value of the passage
The novel True Believer, revolves around two person who came from
different place and with different perceptions about their dream, met and fell
in love. One of the value of this novel is waiting for the right time. Being a
romance novel, this presented love stories that may have failed but believing
and waiting will bring two persons together if the time is right.
Another value of the novel is sometimes, there’s no harm in believing on
something unsure. Not everything has a scientific explanation to it.
Sometimes, it all just takes our heart to believe on something and something
will definitely happen.
From the title itself, the overall value of the passage is to become a true
believer. As long as you believe, anything may be possible.