The Nicholas Sparks’ novel, The Wish, was extremely predictable. Both plot twists came as no surprise to me. And for some reason, I continued to read the book, even though, only halfway through, I had already predicted correctly how it would end. Reading his book reminded me of the time that you worked for the Almanac at Penn. You edited and published the notices about authors holding book tours, new events in the community, etc. It was a generally boring and mundane job, but one of those that you had regularly. One semester, apparently, Nicholas Sparks visited campus to speak about his new book (probably The Longest Ride based on publishing year). Which, to my dismay, YOU FAILED TO TELL ME. I’m not an obsessed fangirl or anything, but still — in the literary world of romance novels, he is most definitely a celebrity. I would have loved to meet him and even gotten a book autographed, just to say I did. You just shrugged while I lamented my missed opportunity.
Anyways, my memories are getting increasingly foggy, so maybe half of this conversation is imagined, but we debated the appeal of his novels. If you were here, I think we could have done a rebuttal. But, as you’re not, I shall carry on for the both of us.
You were never one for sappy romantic plots, not entirely believing in them. I was a hopeless romantic. It didn’t matter that neither of us have experienced anything remotely close to his stories. Whether it was the hot-mess-girl, who literally stumbles into the life of the ridiculously-handsome-and-put-together young man, whereby they then both fall madly in love, conquering all the impossibilities. Or the perfect couple, who complement each other in personalities, weathering every travesty together, sharing all the moments that strengthen their relationship, despite every tragedy that Sparks puts them through.
You were also averse to his character creation, who, despite making them have “flaws,” the characters didn’t really have flaws, which frustrated you to no end. I would say, your flaws made you seem flawless too. I mean, come on — we are each made more unique by our inherent flaws, so it’s not like his characters are too perfect. Although, I can’t quite argue that Landon, despite being the reckless, nonchalant teenager, he still remained sweet and came up with the best gift ever by naming a constellation after Jamie. Maybe that’s a tad unbelievable; I still have hope in the men of this day and age…
You judged me for reading a book even though the plot was predictable. Either they live happily ever after or there is immense tragedy. I will concede, especially after having been a loyal reader since high school, they follow a similar flow. It’s like a Nancy Drew or Mary Higgins Clark series, where their style was obvious and of course the true antagonist was the one with the best alibi. The mystery book was ultimately no mystery at all, yet we always read through the end, just to prove our detective skills.
Despite these very valid points, I still read Nicholas Sparks novels. I don’t know why. Perhaps it’s the need to believe and temporarily transport myself into a fictional world where such romantic magic can happen. Perhaps it’s reaffirming the theme that even when someone dies, their/your love and relationship will always be cherished and that the emotional turmoil was all still worth it. Or perhaps it’s just that the books are straightforward and easy to read, where I’m practically done before I can question my decision to continue reading. Whatever it is, I am both glad and sad that I read The Wish because it reminded me of you and how I can blame you for my missed chance to meet Nicholas Sparks.
