Thursday, October 30, 2008
The Lucky One

Nicholas Sparks is one of my favorite authors and I may not own all his books, but I have read them all, some more than once. He has a way of telling a story which makes you feel like you're part of it. They are similar in style always including a love story and some sort of drama. But it's never a scantily harlequin or a drama that feels too soap-operaish and I suppose that's one of the reasons it feels to real and possible.

My Aunt Bobbie let me borrow Sparks' most recent book, "The Lucky One
." I just finished it and battled with it in a few parts because I didn't see where it was going and I was afraid it would end badly. It seemed hopeless at times. I know not all things have happy endings, but I surely enjoy happy endings in fiction.

There are several important characters in the story, but it all starts with Logan. Logan had served three terms in Iraq and survived while the rest of his platoon did not. He and his friend Victor, who also served, said the reason for his luck was in a photo he found while in Iraq; a photo of a woman he didn't know. Before Victor died he told Logan that the photo was his destiny, he owed the woman his life because she had been his savior and that he must find her.

Logan treks across the country to find the woman in the photo. He figures out the landmark she is pictured near and he shows people the photo. Once he meets Beth, whom he likes to call Elizabeth, they end up falling in love. (It takes some time, but it happens. I'm just rushing the summary here.)

Elizabeth is divorced from the town Deputy who dictates her life since they share a son together. The son, Ben, ends up becoming close with Logan and Logan's dog Zeus. Elizabeth sees their bond and so does her ex-husband, Keith. Keith starts all sorts of trouble but essentially tells Beth that Logan has been stalking her for five years and came looking for her from a photo he had gotten in Iraq. The same photo she gave to her brother, her brother who never made it home from Iraq. Now we see the drama, right?

Turns out Beth is a very fair minded person and once Logan tells her the whole story she eventually sees he isn't an insane stalker. That he genuinely felt he owed her something, and he was taking the advice of his good friend Victor in following his destiny.

Needless to say Keith is unhappy. He threatens to take Ben from Beth. Ben hears it and he runs outside into a storm. A storm with much flooding and heavy rains. So immediately you know Ben is in danger. They realize he would have ran off to his treehouse. (You know I'm skipping over things, but really you should just read the story if any of this entices you).

So there you have a quick run down of a quick story. I happy how things closed though it wasn't tied up in a pretty little package. It's a beautifully written story.

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    Wednesday, October 8, 2008
    Sugar Among the Freaks

    What was it I last read? Oh yes, "Sugar Among the Freaks" by Lewis Nordan. As I wrote up quickly on Goodreads,
    "This book was especially amusing, but dealt with topics I typically am not comfortable with. I had a few chuckles, and than other times wondered what would ever possess the author to write about masturbation so openly."
    That pretty much sums it up for me.

    The book was a collection of 15 short stories which mostly talk about family, coming of age and communities all in the South. It's very colorfully written and so it keeps your attention. Nordan does a great job of quickly describing scenes and scenarios in such as a way that you feel you are remembering something from your own life and childhood.

    For me it was a little bit uncomfortable at times because there are coming of age themes which are awkward to read about. But as long as you don't take yourself too seriously it is a great book and an easy, entertaining read.

    Let's put it this way, if you like people watching than you'll love reading this book. It gives you a chance to visualize the people while getting insight on their "freakish" lives. Just like people watching, only this time you're not making up stories from your own judgment because they've already been made up for you.

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