Book Reviews : My Favourite Love Stories
Happy Valentine's Day! Here is a list of some of my favourite novels that tell great romantic tales. This list is spoiler free so please read on while listening to sad love ballads. I hope you are all having a romantic evening whether with a real love interest or a fictional one from a novel.
When the very talented Gayle
Forman debuted her first novel ‘If I Stay’ it became an international best
seller. While that novel is one of my most loved, the ‘One Day’ series is less
appreciated so I’m here to give it the credit it deserves. This novel is full
with Shakespeare, romance and wanderlust. It is a tale I hope everyone gets the
live once in their lifetime, meeting a mysterious stranger in a new city and
having one day to create memories. American Allyson meets Dutch Willem on a
train bound to London and they decide to go spend the day together in Paris. This
book and the sequels ‘Just One Year’ and ‘Just One Night’ are full of adventure
and inspire you to take the road less travelled. It is vital that within this
lifetime we take adventures we never planned to and forge connections with
strangers. Sometimes just one day is all that is needed to change our outlook
on life. Travelling to places we have never been to and experiencing the
culture, really living like locals, provides the greatest lessons. We must
never stop seeking out places and people if we want to continue to grow into
the most authentic versions of ourselves.
Nicholas Sparks and his one
hit wonder. Okay that's not true, the author is arguably the most popular
romance novelist of this time and this is his most triumph and famous novel. I
mean when it comes to romance authors they are seen as the D grade celebrities
of the writing world. If you would describe Nicholas Sparks you would describe
him as the Kardashian of the best sellers list. Sparks tends to stick to a
formula for all his many novels that include tragedy and love with a healthy
dose of ridiculous twists that add nothing to the plot. While The Notebook has
tragedy, love and twists, it is simply elegant. I would say he should have
stopped here but as much as I do not enjoy his novels, I do enjoy watching the
movies. Here the novel is even better than the almost perfect movie. Set
in a nursing home, an elderly man reads a notebook to an elderly lady who is
living with Alzheimer’s disease. This notebook contains the story of a summer
romance set in North Carolina 1932 where two teenagers, Noah and Ally, from
vastly different backgrounds fall in love while riding Ferris Wheels, going to
the movie theatre and swimming in the creek. The passion conveyed in this novel
is one of the very best I have ever read. It is beautiful and a classic that
will stand the best of time.
Lets judge a book by its
cover. The cover of this novel, designed by Anna Gorovoy, is so beautiful I
splurged and bought a hard cover copy. Set in 1986 this novel follows the love
story of Eleanor and Park. This novel alternates telling the experiences of
both main characters from chapter to chapter. Eleanor is a ‘weird’ girl who
wears ‘weird’ clothes and has messy bright red hair. Eleanor is living with
a secret. Park is a nice, shy boy who loves music. Park is biracial with a
Caucasian father and an Asian mother. Against all odds they form an unbreakable
bond and are faced with challenges no one should have to face. Both Eleanor and
Park are complex yet wonderful people who found their soulmate with the other. Your
heart especially aches for Eleanor because as you can imagine, kids at school
aren’t kind. While Park is ordinary in every sense of the word, him standing by
Eleanor is what makes him extraordinary. This novel is often funny and clever; it holds your attention from start to finish. It is beautifully written; like a
masterpiece of art where every lovely word has been woven together to create
something profound and unique.
This is obviously one of
the greatest American novels of all time. Every school board tends to leave
this on the English curriculum because it has stood the test of time. Honestly
including this in my list here seems a bit ridiculous given how well known it
is but going over my book shelf I came to this decision because it is unlike
the rest. This story is a love story unlike any other. Written in 1925 it tells
the story of Nick Carraway, an ordinary man who befriends his neighbour Jay
Gatsby. Gatsby is a mysterious millionaire who throws lavish parties but no one
is quite sure who he is. Picturing these parties, during the roaring twenties,
opens up the imagination. Parties so elaborate one would do anything to attend.
All the glitz, glamour, jazz music and boot leg alcohol. The motion pictures
have managed to showcase this world. What makes this a love story unlike any
other is the level of obsession and desire. Showcasing the great depths one can
fall into when chasing another. This is a classic for a reason, it tells vital
lessons about social status, political games, betrayal and friendship.
Wishing everyone a day filled with roses and don’t forget to ask out your crush.
I just want to finish up by mentioning I would of put Simon vs. The Homo Sapiens Agenda by Becky Albertalli on this list but since I did a review of that in my my first blog post I left it out but I’m sorry there isn’t a LGBT love story on this list because Simon deserves to be here. I have also left out The Fault In Our Stars by John Green because I will do a review on that masterpiece in an upcoming blog so visit back soon. Please read these romantic tales as well as the above.
Wishing everyone a day filled with roses and don’t forget to ask out your crush.
I just want to finish up by mentioning I would of put Simon vs. The Homo Sapiens Agenda by Becky Albertalli on this list but since I did a review of that in my my first blog post I left it out but I’m sorry there isn’t a LGBT love story on this list because Simon deserves to be here. I have also left out The Fault In Our Stars by John Green because I will do a review on that masterpiece in an upcoming blog so visit back soon. Please read these romantic tales as well as the above.
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