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The Choice
by Nicholas Sparks (Goodreads Author)
by Nicholas Sparks (Goodreads Author)
** spoiler alert **
I should preface this review by saying that The Choice was a really thoughtful Christmas gift from my little brother, Darren. I'm glad I read it, as I've been curious about the Nicholas Sparks following (at least among a certain, um, demographic). Sparks' writing style is also clear, it's an absurdly fast read, and I'd be lying if I claimed the storyline didn't occasionally leave me a bit verklempt.
That, however, is where my praise for The Choice ends. First, the characters in this book were ridiculous. Usually I rail against the media's unrealistic portrayal of women, but the male protagonist in this novel was truly beyond the pale. This man had not ONE character flaw (unless blind, unadulterated devotion to the woman he worships counts). Other issues? Love magically cures what modern medicine can't, cheeeeesy cheeeeeeeesy dialogue, and I WANTED THE FEMALE PROTAGONIST TO DIE. Seriously. There either must be something terribly wrong with me and my empathy skills, or there is something wrong with this book.
I'm sorry, Nicholas Sparks fans. I do enjoy a good fluff-filled love story, and I'm a big fan of certain types of fantasy (hooray, Harry Potter). This was just too much. Maybe The Choice would make a better screenplay; I thoroughly enjoyed the cinematic Notebook, after all.
That, however, is where my praise for The Choice ends. First, the characters in this book were ridiculous. Usually I rail against the media's unrealistic portrayal of women, but the male protagonist in this novel was truly beyond the pale. This man had not ONE character flaw (unless blind, unadulterated devotion to the woman he worships counts). Other issues? Love magically cures what modern medicine can't, cheeeeesy cheeeeeeeesy dialogue, and I WANTED THE FEMALE PROTAGONIST TO DIE. Seriously. There either must be something terribly wrong with me and my empathy skills, or there is something wrong with this book.
I'm sorry, Nicholas Sparks fans. I do enjoy a good fluff-filled love story, and I'm a big fan of certain types of fantasy (hooray, Harry Potter). This was just too much. Maybe The Choice would make a better screenplay; I thoroughly enjoyed the cinematic Notebook, after all.
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Krista
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Jan 07, 2008 05:28pm
Awesome, hilarious review. :)
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omg, YES! I was right there with you on the whole, let's give Nicholas Sparks a chance, everyone says he's so great, whatever whatever. But yeah, this book was TERRIBLE. And her WAKING UP IN THE END? Ridiculous! Ugh.
spot-on review. i was actually surprised she lived... usually he kills 'em off and it's super sad in the end.... and, yes, if the lead man exists somehwere, well ha.if you decide to give him another chance, Nights in Rodanthe was my favorite and it's going to be a Richard Gere chick flick this fall. ;)
happy reading.
I agree that for the fiction's sake, it would have been better if she had died. But there is a reason behind Sparks' choice not to make the character die though. Sparks wrote the book while his sister was very sick and this was his way to keep hoping that she would survive too.
Elise don't be so surprised. In this book he managed to mix all of his signature ingredients:- the widow
- the accident
- the good guy
- the pseudo-independent woman
- the dog
- the weird connection with an animal (the pigeon)
- the desease
- the "nothing else but you gives sense to my existance".
Sorry for that abrupt entrance in his life.
I just read SAFE HAVEN, which is much better. Yet some of these ingredients are there:
- the widow
- the good guy
- the domestic violence (he forgot to put that one on THE CHOICE)
- the flawless main characters
- the desease.
