The Notebook

This is one of the books which have been adapted into a movie that I've seen, and I wanted to read the book.

When I started on the book, about a quarter of the way through, it seemed like it was going to be a lot less fun than the movie. I found the writing style a little awkward and confusing, and I felt that I would not really be getting the hang of what was happening if I hadn't already seen the movie. But it was a good thing that I hung on to it.

The story focuses on three different points of time, three different phases of the lives of the protagonists. Towards the beginning of the book, the author switches between these three a little too rapidly at times, making it slightly difficult to follow. But soon enough, he develops this easy flow and the story unravels in a way that touches the reader's heart all over again. All over again, in case you have seen the movie and know the story and have already been touched by it.

The story focuses on an elderly man's everlasting love for his wife, who suffers from Alzheimer's disease and can barely recognize him any more. It talks of his struggle to make her remember him and their love, his pain as he sees her unable to do so, and his ecstasy when she is able to do so.

It's a hardcore mushy story for the romantic at heart, and a heartwarming, touching tale for those who are not so romantic. It's also a beautifully, poetically written story, with some wonderful quotes from classic poems as well. I'd recommend that everyone should give this a read.