A Walk To Remember Review

After reading Lost Souls I needed to read something that wasn't so scarey and I wanted something to lift my spirits.  I went to my bookshelf and began running my fingers across the many books and was taking notice of the ones that I have yet to read.  I spotted A Walk To Remember and after having seen the movie tons of times and listening to the soundtrack I decided this was the book for me, at the moment.  The funny thing was that I really didn't realize that Nicholas Sparks was also the same person who wrote the book Nights In Rodanthe that would later become a movie.  You can read my review of the movie Nights In Rodanthe here if you like.

As I began reading A Walk To Remember I noticed rather quickly that the book was going to be a little different from the movie.  The book opens up with Landon Carter providing a prologue to his senior year in high school, 1958, Beaufort, NC.  The description of the town was what I can visualize modern day Hilton Head or Beaufort, both in SC.  Basically, it was a Leave It To Beaver kind of town.  Landon isn't exactly the same character as he is in the movie but Jamie is.

Landon has grown up with Jamie Sullivan but never paid much attention to the plain-Jane girl.  Until one day when she asks him, no pleas with him to participate in the town's Christmas play.  She says it's very important for the play to be a big success this year for her father.  Jamie's father, Hegbert is a preacher.  Landon agrees but doesn't realize the significance of the importance of this play, this year.

As the couple begins to rehearse and spend time together the obvious happens.  Landon falls for Jamie.  The storyline is predictable but not because you have seen the movie.  It's predictable because you know that the guy usually gets the girl in a story for young people.  What's not predictable is how the relationship transpires.

You will need to read A Walk To Remember to see some of the differences in the storylines between book and movie:

• What is Landon's father's profession?
• Where does Landon's family money come from?
• What are the main interests of the characters?
• Why does Landon ask Jamie to a dance and what does he do to make this decision? 
• What are Landon's plans after graduation?

Some of the passages from the book:

• Jamie turned away, but I could see the tears in her eyes.  It was the first time I'd ever seen her cry.  I think part of me wanted to cry, too.
• I hated when she said things like that.  With her, you just knew she talked to the Lord every day, and you never knew what the "Big Guy upstairs" had told her.  She might even have a direct ticket into Heaven, if you know what I mean, being as how good a person she was.
• Being in love with a girl like Jamie Sullivan was without a doubt the strangest thing I'd ever been through.  Not only was she a girl that I'd never thought about before this year...but there was something different in the whole way my feelings for her had unfolded.
• By now Jamie had lost more weight.  Her skin was beginning to take on a slightly grayish tint, and the bones in her hands were starting to show through her skin.  Again I saw bruises.

Keep a Kleenex nearby because you will probably cry.  Your faith will be shaken as you see a guy pray for a miracle.  Will it happen?  You faith will be strenthened as you see a guy place his faith in God.  You'll be encouraged as you see real love tried and tested. 

I love this book and will probably read it again and again thru the years.  It's well written and presents the characters with so much depth that you feel as if you know them.  If you have a younger daughter (pre-teen to teen), friend, etc. you won't be embarrassed to recommend this book.  It's clean throughout and very uplifting.

Additional Book Information:

• ISBN: 0-446-60895-5
• Publication Date: 1999
• Publisher: Warner Books
• Format: 240 pages, std paperback
• Cover Price: $6.99
• My Price: $4.99 @ Walmart