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Tag Archives: Nicholas Sparks

Countdown to Valentine’s Day: Bookish Shipping

12 Tuesday Feb 2019

Posted by KaylasOnlyHeart in books, Uncategorized

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bookish, books, couples, love, Nicholas Sparks, romance, Sarah Dessen, Shakespeare, To All the Boys I've Loved Before, Twilight, Valentine's Day

As the Twilight phenomenon blew up across the globe, the prevalence of shipping, fans seriously rooting for a fictional couple, increased. People discussing Twilight wanted to know if the other joined Team Edward or Team Jacob. I started my Twilight reread and started contemplating what bookish couples had me pulling for them.

 

Bella and Edward in Twilight by Stephenie Meyer: Say what you want, but this story obviously appeals to a lot of people, including my own dad. The beautiful vampire falls in love with a human, and all the danger of forbidden love breaks loose. Their interest in each other gets intense before they even have a relationship. Teenage angst and immortality meet to give a love story for the ages. Plus, invitations to high school dances abound.

Beatrice and Benedick in Much Ado about Nothing by Shakespeare: My favorite Shakespeare line comes from this play. It begins with Benedick’s greeting to Beatrice: “My lady disdain, are you yet living?” Their witty banter lives on in romantic comedies throughout the ages, including my favorite When Harry Met Sally. Benedick and Beatrice make suffering love so comedically fun and sweet.

Laura Jean and Peter in To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before by Jenny Han: Laura Jean makes such a relatable role model worthy heroine. Her love story with Peter captures all the awkwardness of learning how to talk and relate to boys. Not to mention, the story starts with love letters. Han beautifully blends traditional aspects of romance with modern culture.

Ruby and Nate in Lock and Key by Sarah Dessen: In her usual fashion, Dessen writes another realistic teen story. Ruby and Nate end up as neighbor friends, finding they understand each other’s family situations. They learn how to trust a friend and how to face parents who don’t fulfill their roles. This falls a little outside the Valentine theme, but it has depth and hope.

Jamie and Landon in A Walk to Remember by Nicholas Sparks: It wouldn’t be Valentine’s season without some Nicholas Sparks in the mix. Jamie and Landon get the intensity of the eternal teenage love. Plus, they show the transformation of a perceived bad boy once someone gives him positive feedback and a chance to improve. Love really opens doorways for growth, and Jamie’s adherence to her faith allows that.

 

What book couples would you add to this list? Share your favorites in the comments.

Countdown to Valentine’s Day: A Walk to Remember

02 Saturday Feb 2019

Posted by KaylasOnlyHeart in Uncategorized

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A Walk to Remember, faith, goals, love, love story, Nicholas Sparks, support, teens, Valentine's Day

As we reach the middle point between the 17th anniversary of A Walk to Remember’s theatrical release and Valentine’s Day, let’s take a moment to appreciate its legacy. The movie would reach its senior year of high school this year if it were a person. The young protagonists in this teenage love story find themselves caught up in an unlikely love story in one of the early, and one of the better, Nicholas Sparks novel screen adaptations. Jamie Sullivan models a lived faith where she willingly helps those around her regardless of their past, and Landon Carter shows us that with support people can improve themselves.

As we walk into the month of love, let’s consider how we can show love to others, maybe even to those society brushes off as hopeless. Landon asks Jamie to run lines with him so he won’t make a fool of himself in the spring play, and Jamie agrees so the whole production won’t suffer. She gives Landon a chance to live up to his challenge. Take a look around you. Is there someone who could use a loving hand to accomplish a task or who could use the company of someone supportive? Start with showing up and being willing to help even with what seems like a small favor. Big changes happen through a series of small steps.

 

2016 Reads

08 Sunday Jan 2017

Posted by KaylasOnlyHeart in books, Journal, Uncategorized

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2016, book club, books, Charlaine Harris, comics, Eleanor & Park, Jean Sasson, Nicholas Sparks, Rainbow Rowell, read, reading, Richard Paul Evans, Sarah Dessen, Supergirl

As we finish the first week of the new year, I would like to reflect on my last year’s reading. I read more than I have in years, and I noticed it helped me feel better than I have. Some highly regarded intellectuals like John Maxwell, as well as other sources, note the importance of regular reading and how a routine of even fifteen minutes a day can lead to finishing numerous books in a year. Last year I learned a lot as I kept my mind cycling through books rather than my ruminative thoughts. Here is a list the list of 61 works I read last year:

A * denotes a book read for a book club or list.

*Noah’s Compass – Anne Tyler

The Longest Ride – Nicholas Sparks

The Girls of Mischief Bay – Susan Mallery

*The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society – Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows

*The Language of Flowers – Vanessa Diffenbaugh

*The Dressmaker – Kate Alcott

*Defending Jacob – William Landy

Captivating – John and Stasi Eldredge

Princess – Jean Sasson

*Lock and Key – Sarah Dessen

*Unbroken – Laura Hillenbrand

Supergirl – Michael Green

*The Little Paris Bookshop – Nina George

Supergirl Vol. 1: The Girl of Steel – Jeph Loeb

The Wasted Vigil – Nadeem Aslam

I Kissed Dating Goodbye – Joshua Harris

What the Dog Saw – Malcolm Gladwell

The Depression Cure – Stephen S. Ilardi

This Is Where I Leave You – Jonathan Tropper

*American Born Chinese – Gene Luen Yang

*Everything Everything – Nicola Yoon

*Mockingjay – Suzanne Collins

*I Am Princess X – Cherrie Priest

Tuck Everlasting – Natalie Babbit

*Harry Potter and the Cursed Child – J.K. Rowling

The Rosie Project – Graeme Simsion

A Mad, Wicked Folly – Sharon Biggs Waller

The Leaving of Things – Jay Antani

Batman: The Killing Joke – Alan Moore

Waiting for You – Susane Colasanti

The Summer of Chasing Mermaids – Sarah Ockler

Gifts Differing – Isbel Briggs Myers

*Dead Until Dark – Charlaine Harris

*Carry On – Rainbow Rowell

Emmy & Oliver – Robin Benway

Eleanor & Park – Rainbow Rowell

*The Fault in Our Stars – John Green

*Dept. of Speculation – Jenny Offill

Outlander – Diana Gabaldon

*Club Dead – Charlaine Harris

A Christmas Carol – Charles Dickens

See Me – Nicholas Sparks

The Mistletoe Promise – Richard Paul Evans

Starry Night – Debbie Macomber

*Scoop – Evelyn Waugh

The Christmas Box – Richard Paul Evans

Timepiece – Richard Paul Evans

The Death of Superman – Dan Jurgens

 

Books I reread:

If I Stay – Gayle Forman

Much Ado About Nothing – William Shakespeare

The Choice – Nicholas Sparks

The Picture of Dorian Gray – Oscar Wilde

Peter Pan – J.M. Barrie

The Perks of Being a Wallflower – Stephen Chbosky

Winnie the Pooh – A.A. Milne

The House at Pooh Corner – A.A. Milne

 

I choose Eleanor & Park as my top read last year. It completely pulled me into the story and relationship between the characters as I found myself thinking about them between readings. I found myself exclaiming I wanted to cry when I finished; the reality and emotion in that book felt so tragically authentic. This book may become a routine read for Valentine’s Day or some occasion so I can enjoy it on some regular basis. I highly recommend it. Sadly, I saw it several times before deciding to give it a try. I picked it off the bookshelf at stores so many times thinking it caught my interest but not feeling completely compelled. Now I’m gifting it to friends who feel the same way because I want them to experience its greatness as well.

Last year I also read my first few comic books. I still hold no expertise when it comes to the comic world, but I have learned that not all comics hold equal appeal. The same character has stories by numerous authors. While the storyline may follow similarly in all of them, some simply aren’t as good. I suggest using some sort of research, whether Goodreads or other readers, to avoid reading the ho-hum comics.

Since Christmas and my birthday have just passed, I’ve got a nice stack of books ready to get me through the first part of the year. I’m excited to keep up the heavy reading (to keep my heavy spirits up)!

 

See Me Sparks a Last Place Spot

10 Saturday Dec 2016

Posted by KaylasOnlyHeart in books, Uncategorized

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book, book review, books, career, characters, comfort, family, life, love, mystery, Nicholas Sparks, read, reading, romance, See Me, suspense, thriller, writing

I recently finished reading Nicholas Sparks’ second newest novel See Me. Though I consider myself a big Sparks fan, I did not enjoy this story nearly as much as his other books. Seeing him write a story with a greater thriller aspect showed a range in his talents, but the story didn’t get as deep as usual.

The characters were in their mid twenties like me, and I wouldn’t have guessed that. Colin attending college classes gives him a younger aspect, but Maria didn’t seem to hold many similarities to me or any of my friends my age. Unlike most of us, she got right into a good career track and in law, a tough field. To top off the two dimensional characters, the suspense had hit and miss elements. The mystery itself for the stalker had its strength and would have fit into the thriller genre as far as I can tell since I don’t read many books in that genre. However, it took multiple paragraphs to get to an assailant sneaking up to Maria. Even I knew the forthcoming action and didn’t feel added suspense waiting those extra descriptive paragraphs just for the actual event.

I still enjoyed the book and still love Sparks. This book just might rank last in all the ones I’ve read. I suppose one has to land there. It shows Sparks can flex his writing muscles in genres outside love stories, and it demonstrated the power of a close knit family (Maria’s) and how people and look out for and comfort each other.

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