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More Than Just A Good Read Book Review By James Myers http://www.morebeautifulwoman.com/more_than_a_good_read http://www.myspace.com/jameswmyers http://stores.ebay.com/Big-Jims-New-Store_W0QQssPageNameZl2QQtZkm Dear John By Nicholas Sparks Published by Warner Books ISBN# 978-0-446-52805-4 Hardback 276 Pages www.hachettebookgroupusa.com Rating: , (5 Stars) “What does it mean to truly love another?” As a book reviewer for two different website, I read many, many books over the course of a year. Nicholas Sparks, one of America’s greatest storytellers, with 6 New York Times #1 best sellers and over 50 million copies of his books in print has a moving winner in his recent book, Dear John. This is a story about a young man, John Tyree, who has a drifting, disconnected existence. His childhood is marred by his mother deserting his father. His high school years are non-committal and disconnected. His early adult life is the classic existential dangling young man. He joins the Army because he has run out of options at home. His hopes of structure in the army are not met. His life has no meaning or purpose. Then he meets someone who will change his life forever, Savannah Lee Curtis. Stable and steady, she brings that once in a lifetime breath of fresh air into his life. They fall deeply in love. This is not an ordinary love affair, this is the one. This is a love affair where both parties seem to have found the love of their lives. Savannah tells him she will wait for him, until he is out of the service. Together or apart, their love grows. Their love will last forever. Then 9/11 happens, and in wave patriotism the men in John’s unit, extend their tours of duty. So does John. Savannah in an unexpected move writes him the letter servicemen dread the most, the “Dear John” letter. John is crushed and confused. Despite his pain, he still loves her. The story does not end there. John still loves her and upon returning home, he is forced to make a difficult, mature decision, the type of decision that he made poorly before he met her. This is a story handled by a Hawthorn type storyteller. It immediately grabs you and brings you into the conflict between the main characters with sharp emotions and keen insight. This is an extraordinary study of how true love changes us and endures, even in the most unlikely of circumstances. If you read just one book this year, this is the one to read. It has become one of my favorites, and I give this book my highest recommendation.Read full review
This novel is Nicholas Sparks' best one yet, as by the book's conclusion, he pegged it right on what true love is really about. All I can say is wow! His last few books have been disappointing, to say the least, and unbelievable. With his new one, he takes an idea everyone in the military knows about...the notorious "Dear John" letter that women decide to write to the love of their lives when they are either in basic training, on an overseas assignment, or fighting in some war. Why women decide to write such a letter at stressful and lonely times as those is beyond the comprehension of any man, but it happens, and Sparks took that idea and ran with it. Though he doesn't have any military background himself, he represented the military lingo pretty accurately and has a grasp of soldier life in Germany. I'm impressed. What I find most fascinating with this novel is how well everything comes together in the end. What once seemed like a young man's strange isolation from his aloof father, his summertime fling with a type of woman he'd never consider dating before, and how such relationship changes him and his own relationship with his father. We see the good, the bad (though John isn't a bad guy, he has his human moments of imperfection, as well as the love his life, Savannah), and the beautiful, as Sparks hits the mark on what true love really means. That's what makes this novel a must read in his literary canon. The reason I deduct one star, however, is based automatically on Sparks' tendency in several novels to perpetuate the 1950s cliche of "the white picket fence" that he seems to think women want. Yet, in all the neighborhood houses I've seen in my travels, it is rare to come across the stereotypical 50's ideal of a house with the white picket fence, so why does he mention that detail in novel after novel? A best-selling writer shouldn't rely on cliches and an editor should automatically zap it out. My only other complaint is that some of the dialogue in the beginning seemed a bit unrealistic to me. It didn't ring true with me, but other than those bits, it truly is his best novel to date. Let's face it, Nicholas Sparks is a man who knows what true love is and it's great to see a story that shows it by the resolution. The ending made all the difference between a great novel and another cliched romantic novel.Read full review
My sister in law loaned this book to be, I read it and had to have my own copy, Dear John is one of the best books I have ever read. I will read it again, when I get it back from a friend I loaned it to so she could read it. Looking forward to reading another Nicholas Sparks. easy to read and caring.
Verified purchase: Yes | Condition: Pre-owned
This was a great way to get a hardcover book without having to pay a big price for it. I prefer to read a hardcover but do not like to pay the price ask at book stores for them. Usually, I settle for a paperback or don't buy at all. I am really careful with my budget. I appreciate what good shape the book was in. It looks brand new. I could have checked the book out at the local library but this way I have it to either keep and reread or to pass on to someone that might enjoy the read. Thank you ebay for making such opportunities to save money possible.
I personally have been reading alot of Nicholas Sparks books. The newest one "The Last Song" was the first of his books that I have read. I absolutely loved it, I also loved the movie "A Walk to Remember" so I started researching his books and started buying them on Ebay because they are all reasonably priced. Dear John was a good book, a little boring in the beginning, but once I got deeper into the book and the story unfolded I was hooked. Very surprising ending, and an over all good read, although I was a little upset with the ending. Looking forward to seeing the movie in February.
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