The Last Song by Nicholas Sparks

The Last Song by Nicholas Sparks


My rating: 4 of 5 stars
I just finished this book for book club last night. I really loved it. I do believe it's a bit formulaic - you know, Nicholas Sparks' books usually have sort of good guy vs. bad guy, some for of love story and some sort of sadness/tragedy. Even so, I thought it was a very enjoyable read. For me the first chapter was hard to get into because it just left too many questions, but that feeling went away as I got into the real meat of the book and it read smoothly and quickly after that.

I read somewhere that this was Nicholas Sparks' longest novel to date, and I believe it payed off. He developed the characters and the plot in much more depth than his previous novels, and I think that is part of what made it an enjoyable read, and in the end, what helped you relate to the characters.

The things I took away from this novel were a reminder to cherish those you love because you never know when you may not see them again and a reminder that things are not always as they seem, so trust yourself and hold off judgment, and finally to figure out who you are and be true to yourself.


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2009 Reading Recap

It's been awhile since I posted, but I thought it would be fun to share with you my reading list from 2009. My goal was to get 25 books read, varying in categories from Spiritual Growth, Financial Savviness, Health/Wellness, Career/Leadership, classics, recent best sellers, and then just some fluff.

I was able to get 17 books done, and covered some classics, recent best sellers, and others. So not quite to my goal, but good enough, considering the last year has been a crazy one.

What I read in 2009:
"Gone with the Wind" by Margaret Mitchell
"The Good Earth" by Pearl S. Buck
"Marley and Me" by Josh Grogan
"The Guernsey Literary & Potato Peel Pie Society" by Mary Ann Schaffer
"American Wife" by Curtis Sittenfeld
"The Girl from Ames" by Jeffrey Zaslow
"Jane Boleyn" by Julia Fox
"The Sugar Queen" by Sarah Addison Allen
"Ellen Foster" by Kay Gibbons
"Little Earthquakes" by Jennifer Weiner
"Intern" by Sandeep Jauhar
"The Five Love Languages" by Gary Chapman
"STORi Telling" By Tori Spelling
"The Year of Fog" by Michelle Richmond
"No One You Know" by Michelle Richmond
"You'll Never Nanny in this Town Again" by Suzanne Hansen
"The Weight of Silence" by Heather Gudenkauf

I think my favorites of the year were "The Guernsey Literary..."; "Gone with the Wind" (can you believe I'd never read this or seen the movie before?); the Michelle Richmond books (great story teller who weaves a lot into the story); and "Marley & Me" which was hilarious, particularly if you've ever known a "Marley".

And now I'm kicking of 2010 with "Eat, Pray, Love" by Elizabeth Gilbert.

I am on GoodReads if anyone would like to find me over there. I find it's a great way to keep track of what you've read, what you'd like to read, and what your friends are reading.

Happy New Year!