Book Review: The Notebook
Author: Nicholas Sparks
Publisher: Bantam
Rating: 3
Synopsis (via Goodreads): Set amid the austere beauty of the North Carolina coast, The Notebook begins with the story of Noah Calhoun, a rural Southerner recently returned form the Second World War. Noah is restoring a plantation home to its former glory, and he is haunted by images of the beautiful girl he met fourteen years earlier, a girl he loved like no other. Unable to find her, yet unwilling to forget the summer they spent together, Noah is content to live with only memories...until she unexpectedly returns to his town to see him once again. Like a puzzle within a puzzle, the story of Noah and Allie is just the beginning. As it unfolds, their tale miraculously becomes something different, with much higher stakes. The result is a deeply moving portrait of love itself, the tender moments and the fundamental changes that affect us all. It is a story of miracles and emotions that will stay with you forever.
Review: I've never been much of a romantic person, but I thought I would try reading something new. Nicholas Sparks was something new, and it was ok but not wow worthy either.
I'd seen parts of the movie with Rachel McAdams in that cute little Rosie the Riveter get-up and Ryan Gosling (*swoon*) looking like a hot mechanic. You know, the whole "if you're a bird, I'm a bird" scene. While I was reading, I kept waiting for that scene to happen. And waiting. And waiting. That's the problem with book to movie translations. There's a 20% chance that the movie will follow the book perfectly, like TFiOS. The other 80% barely does the author justice because the script is totally rewritten. This is the #1 reason I read the book before seeing the movie. Oh, and I also knew how Noah and Allie's story ended. That tends to be a mood-killer.
Perhaps this is the reason I didn't enjoy the book as much. I already knew what was going to happen. It could've also been Sparks' writing style. Like I said before, I wanted to read something new and every author has their own technique on how they bring the story to life. In Nicholas Sparks' case, he was very descriptive. Very, very descriptive. I'm pretty sure there was more explanation of what the characters were doing then dialog itself. It threw me off guard and I didn't really enjoy it.
I blame authors for my unrealistic expectations in boyfriends. Who wouldn't want their own Noah? The love story of Allie and Noah was kinda cute. It was the typical summer teenager relationship with one of them moving away and the next time they see each other, one of them happens to be engaged. *cue love triangle* Throw a workaholic lawyer in the mix and you want to defend Noah and Allie by hitting someone in the face with a guitar.
I have another Nicholas Sparks' novel on my shelf, but after reading The Notebook, I think I'm going to take a break from romance and get back to the action.
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