Status
Checked out
Due Apr 29, 2024
Call number
Call number
F Spa
Genres
Collection
Publication
Grand Central Publishing (2012), Edition: Reprint, 320 pages
Description
Fiction. Literature. Romance. Suspense. HTML:In this #1 New York Times bestselling novel of first love and second chances, former high school sweethearts confront the painful truths of their past to build a promising future�??together. "Everyone wanted to believe that endless love was possible. She'd believed in it once, too, back when she was eighteen." In the spring of 1984, high school students Amanda Collier and Dawson Cole fell deeply, irrevocably in love. Though they were from opposite sides of the tracks, their love for one another seemed to defy the realities of life in their small town in North Carolina. But as the summer of their senior year came to a close, unforeseen events would tear the young couple apart, setting them on radically divergent paths. Now, twenty-five years later, Amanda and Dawson are summoned back home for the funeral of Tuck Hostetler, the mentor who once gave shelter to their high school romance. Neither has lived the life they imagined . . . and neither can forget the passionate first love that forever changed their lives. As Amanda and Dawson carry out the instructions Tuck left behind for them, they realize that everything they thought they knew�??about Tuck, about themselves, and about the dreams they held dear�??was not as it seemed. Forced to confront painful memories, the former lovers will discover undeniable truths about the choices they have made. And in the course of a single, searing weekend, they will ask of the living, and the dead: Can love truly rewrite the p… (more)
Original publication date
2011
Similar in this library
User reviews
LibraryThing member sharlene_w
This book followed Nicholas Sparks' usual formula, this time with star-crossed teens from opposite sides of the track reunited as adults. While it was enjoyable reading--what I would call a beach or pool-side read-- my main disappointment was that I felt the characters who were the dark element
Show More
were rather unbelievable. It seemed a giant leap to me that people would actually behave the way they did. A lot of those parts of the storyline seem very rough and hastily crafted--really rather slapped together. An author should write what they know about. Nicholas Sparks knows the romantic formula, but he obviously doesn't know about criminal behavior. Show Less
LibraryThing member TerriBooks
I always like Nicholas Sparks' books. Except this time. He's done better. The story seemed to drag, until the end when it all of a sudden tied things together almost too quickly. I also had a hard time believing the characters' motivations. A lot of Dawson's choices just don't make sense. And the
Show More
final twist is just too unlikely to be believable. Overall, disappointing. Show Less
LibraryThing member ElizabethBraun
"The Best of me" was definitely not the best of Nicholas Sparks. The romance between Amanda and Dawson was typical Sparks, a love that lasts a lifetime. However, the long, detailed scenes of violence were not what I was looking for in a light read. Nor was this strange tendency for the characters,
Show More
Dawson and Tuck, to be led by and communicate with ghosts. I think what makes Sparks stand out as an author is his realism and descriptions of love and heartache. So, violence and surrealism don't fit well in his genre. Show Less
LibraryThing member spalmer226
Although I love Nicholas Sparks this was not his best. I still read every word, but it was entirely too predictable and I didn't feel I knew these characters as well.
LibraryThing member bookescapest
I absolutely love all Nicholas Sparks books. This one like all the others took a day for me to get through, and though everyone is right and the ending was fairly predictable, I still loved it. I love the characters and I love the thought of greater forces in our life.
LibraryThing member teeth
This book was not Nicholas Spark's best> Amand and dawson were teenage lovers and were separated by different backgounds. They come together again later on because of a friends death. There was were many unlikeable characters and one could see the ending coming.
LibraryThing member acook
The Best of Me is not the best of Nicholas Sparks. Although you can see the ending coming from many pages away, I did not like it, no I did not. There weren't many ways to end this one, though, and keep his characters honorable.
LibraryThing member bdouglas97
This was not one of my favorite N.Sparks books because I felt it was totally predictable. Some of his others evolked more emotion from me but because I knew what was going to happen here, I felt empty at the end.
LibraryThing member theadawn
Another wonderful romance novel, written by the man himself. I know that I can always count on a good and heart felt romance when I read Nicholas Sparks, and he always has a good plot and story line to go along with the romance. This book was no exception to that rule. Like Dear John, I liked the
Show More
ending to this story, because it may not have been exactly what the reader or even the characters in the book to want it to end, it was still realistic and a fitting ending. Everything came together as it ought to have and it was a good read. One thing different however was the number of different characters that the book was written in the perspective of. It got slightly confusing at times when I was unsure of who the character was, but in the end all the characters came together making the ending as it should be. Show Less
LibraryThing member gogglemiss
With any Nicholas Sparks book, romance comes side by side with bittersweet tragedy, and as I haven't read him for a while now, I had forgotten how I love and hate his books at the same time. This story did not go the way I wanted it to. How selfish am I?
LibraryThing member FolkeB
The Best of Me by Nicholas Sparks is another classic ‘Nicholas Sparks romance novel’ where there is some sort of conflict with the two main characters but there is still an extremely strong love aspect to it. Though it was a book that kept me wanting to read it and turn the pages, it had a very
Brittany B.
Show More
predictable ending; which is odd for a Nicholas Sparks book, so I was a little disappointed with the ending. Along with that, I feel like a lot of his books have the same plot line and same aspects to it so you definitely know what to expect when you pick up a Nicholas Sparks book; a love story, with twists and turns that keep the suspense up. Even with that in mind I have still read all of his books and will continue to read any of his new books. I give this book a 3.5 out of 5 stars. It was a good book and kept me reading, but I have liked some of his other books much more and I was somewhat disappointed with the ending.Brittany B.
Show Less
LibraryThing member hankesj
Nicholas Sparks novels are kind of my guilty pleasure… I know I’ll never come away from his novels with an enlightened or deepened view of the world, but I always know I’ll walk away from his novels feeling the love from the characters. That being said, it’s hard for me to rate this novel
The Good: I really loved and appreciated the way Sparks took on the topic of alcoholism. He didn’t make the character the stereotypical dirty, violent, raging alcoholic. Instead he chose to showcase the character as a high-functioning alcoholic, a middle class, white collar, nice family man. I think Sparks made a great choice doing this because there are SO many families that experience alcoholism in a parent even though on the outside they may seem completely normal. Even successful, charming businessmen and women can fall into the traps of alcoholism. Sparks also did a magnificent job creating the worlds scariest brothers. Oh my. Ted and Abee Cole are some frightening characters. These are the type of guys who wouldn’t blink an eye at killing someone if they were provoked. They are the main character’s brothers and I don’t blame Dawson for hating his kin. There were actually passages that I cringed because the brothers were that creepy/scary. The one thing I ALWAYS love about Sparks books are the settings. I love the North Carolina southern-ish type of setting. He always describes the setting in such detail that I think I can visit North Carolina in my head rather than actually going there. It makes me want to move there!
The Bad: Okay. Besides being horribly predictable, this book is basically The Notebook/Message in a Bottle/Nights in Rodanthe mixed into one. Rich girl meets poor boy, they fall in love, girl is forbidden to see boy because her parents disapprove, boy and girl have fight, life goes on but both think about each other often, then something happens that brings them back together and they rekindle their “one true love” status but both believe things should go back to “normal” until one of them realizes that’s the wrong decision and then something tragic and bad happens and there is a sappy ending. Something else I’ve noticed is that the older I get and the more and more I read, the less and less Spark’s sentences seem unique. They seem a bit contrived, forced and cheesy honestly. I’m really not trying to dog on him because I truly do love him and his ideas, I’m just saying there are some things you don’t realize until you get older and the quality of his writing is one of those things. As far as the characters go, it’s hard to get attached to the characters because as far as I’m concerned, I’ve seen Amanda and Dawson in Sparks other novels. Whereas when I read The Notebook, Noah and Allie were such unique, different characters that I couldn’t help but fall in love with them. I also thought the character of Tuck could have been SO MUCH MORE. He was supposed to be this great character that represented the past for Amanda and Dawson but he just didn’t live up to the hype he was given in the first couple chapters. There’s a part where he leaves letters for Amanda and Dawson and Sparks builds up the scene like these letters are going to contain some serious information or advice and once the letters are revealed, they really aren’t anything great. I was highly disappointed.
Overall, I’m not denying the fact that I finished this book in a day and a half and that I plowed through it with intensity like I do for amazing books, all I’m saying is that this is a novel I’ve seen many times before, mostly from Sparks himself and I was hoping it would be a little different. I’m going to give this book a C.
Show More
because even though I love his novels, I really am starting to get tired of the recycled plots/characters formula. But I’m gonna try my hardest to explain what I did and didn’t like about this one.The Good: I really loved and appreciated the way Sparks took on the topic of alcoholism. He didn’t make the character the stereotypical dirty, violent, raging alcoholic. Instead he chose to showcase the character as a high-functioning alcoholic, a middle class, white collar, nice family man. I think Sparks made a great choice doing this because there are SO many families that experience alcoholism in a parent even though on the outside they may seem completely normal. Even successful, charming businessmen and women can fall into the traps of alcoholism. Sparks also did a magnificent job creating the worlds scariest brothers. Oh my. Ted and Abee Cole are some frightening characters. These are the type of guys who wouldn’t blink an eye at killing someone if they were provoked. They are the main character’s brothers and I don’t blame Dawson for hating his kin. There were actually passages that I cringed because the brothers were that creepy/scary. The one thing I ALWAYS love about Sparks books are the settings. I love the North Carolina southern-ish type of setting. He always describes the setting in such detail that I think I can visit North Carolina in my head rather than actually going there. It makes me want to move there!
The Bad: Okay. Besides being horribly predictable, this book is basically The Notebook/Message in a Bottle/Nights in Rodanthe mixed into one. Rich girl meets poor boy, they fall in love, girl is forbidden to see boy because her parents disapprove, boy and girl have fight, life goes on but both think about each other often, then something happens that brings them back together and they rekindle their “one true love” status but both believe things should go back to “normal” until one of them realizes that’s the wrong decision and then something tragic and bad happens and there is a sappy ending. Something else I’ve noticed is that the older I get and the more and more I read, the less and less Spark’s sentences seem unique. They seem a bit contrived, forced and cheesy honestly. I’m really not trying to dog on him because I truly do love him and his ideas, I’m just saying there are some things you don’t realize until you get older and the quality of his writing is one of those things. As far as the characters go, it’s hard to get attached to the characters because as far as I’m concerned, I’ve seen Amanda and Dawson in Sparks other novels. Whereas when I read The Notebook, Noah and Allie were such unique, different characters that I couldn’t help but fall in love with them. I also thought the character of Tuck could have been SO MUCH MORE. He was supposed to be this great character that represented the past for Amanda and Dawson but he just didn’t live up to the hype he was given in the first couple chapters. There’s a part where he leaves letters for Amanda and Dawson and Sparks builds up the scene like these letters are going to contain some serious information or advice and once the letters are revealed, they really aren’t anything great. I was highly disappointed.
Overall, I’m not denying the fact that I finished this book in a day and a half and that I plowed through it with intensity like I do for amazing books, all I’m saying is that this is a novel I’ve seen many times before, mostly from Sparks himself and I was hoping it would be a little different. I’m going to give this book a C.
Show Less
LibraryThing member sashayla
I'm pretty sure this was my first Nicholas Sparks book, although I have seen a couple of movies based on his books. I agree 100% with the reviewer who said that the long, detailed scenes of violence were not what she was looking for. I would never have expected this in a Nicholas Sparks book, and
Show More
it ruined the book for me. I avoid violent content like the plague because it disturbs me. After the first violent scene or two I skipped over them because they did not add anything to the story whatsoever as long as you could figure out the outcome. So I would have to say that I wasn't all that thrilled with this book. Show Less
LibraryThing member JudithDCollins
"A winner!! Have read all his books and this is one of my favorites...even though sad..A must read and looking forward to seeing the movie with Nicholas as producer. When finished left you wanting more...Highly recommend as finished it on audio on the way from NC back to Florida. "
LibraryThing member juniperjungle
I must start this review by being completely honest, after I watched the film version of The Notebook I borrowed a pile of books by Nicholas Sparks keen to catch up with everything he’d written. I made it a few chapters into one of the books (I don’t remember which one now) and decided he
The Best of Me starts out with Dawson and Amanda both making their way back to their hometown, they’ve been summoned by a lawyer after Tuck, their old friend and father figure, died. We quickly get a look at both of these characters, and learn a little about the person they were and how their lives have ended up. I found them both intriguing characters, particularly Dawson.
Whilst we only got to see Tuck through the eyes and memories of Dawson and Amanda I found that I really liked him as a character. I think I would have enjoyed reading a book about the younger Dawson and Amanda, and their relationship with each other and with Tuck.
The final third of the book felt to me quite different to the first two thirds. Characters who had not been featured very much start to take a more significant role and the narrative switches between them all quite rapidly. The twists and turns of the last few chapters unfortunately didn’t work for me, they meant the ending was very neat and tidy, and I saw them coming.
So, did I enjoy it? Yes, absolutely. Did I love it? No, the ending wasn’t really my cup of tea. Will I be reading more by Nicholas Sparks? Yes, I can see that my first experience with his books was not a true representation of them and I shall certainly be picking up some of his other books.
Show More
wasn’t actually a writer for me and gave up. In the years since I’ve heard so many people raving about how brilliant his books are that when I was offered a copy of The Best of Me to review I thought I probably ought to give him another go, maybe I’d been too young to appreciate him before or maybe when I tried one of his books before I was just in a grump.The Best of Me starts out with Dawson and Amanda both making their way back to their hometown, they’ve been summoned by a lawyer after Tuck, their old friend and father figure, died. We quickly get a look at both of these characters, and learn a little about the person they were and how their lives have ended up. I found them both intriguing characters, particularly Dawson.
Whilst we only got to see Tuck through the eyes and memories of Dawson and Amanda I found that I really liked him as a character. I think I would have enjoyed reading a book about the younger Dawson and Amanda, and their relationship with each other and with Tuck.
The final third of the book felt to me quite different to the first two thirds. Characters who had not been featured very much start to take a more significant role and the narrative switches between them all quite rapidly. The twists and turns of the last few chapters unfortunately didn’t work for me, they meant the ending was very neat and tidy, and I saw them coming.
So, did I enjoy it? Yes, absolutely. Did I love it? No, the ending wasn’t really my cup of tea. Will I be reading more by Nicholas Sparks? Yes, I can see that my first experience with his books was not a true representation of them and I shall certainly be picking up some of his other books.
Show Less
LibraryThing member jbarr5
The Best of Me by Nicholas Sparks
Dawson works on the oil rigs in the Gulf of Mexico, 30 days on, 30 days off and has his money sent to places nobody could ever find if they tried.
When he was younger he fell in love with her, she was from the other side of the tracks and her father and mother held
Instead of going to unknown places with Dawson when school ended she took off to college, met her husband, now a dentist and an alcoholic with 3 kids, and one also had died from cancer.
He ended up in jail for an accident and he would send money to the the wife and kids of the guy he felt he killed. He had met Amanda through Tucker, who he lived with and had given him
a job fixing cars. Tucker had lost his wife recently and having Dawson there was good for him.
When Tucker died they both came to town and got time to talk to one another and were given instructions on the memorial service Tucker had wanted private and what to do with the things he owned.
Dawson was still having nightmares of an explosion that occurred on the oil rig. He keeps seeing the guy at different places, he knows he is seeing things and when he looks again the man is not there.
While at the cabin he tells her about his cousins, they are mean tempered.
She must return home and deal with family life again.
Love how the book all comes together at the very end, thus giving the title of this book true meaning.
Dawson works on the oil rigs in the Gulf of Mexico, 30 days on, 30 days off and has his money sent to places nobody could ever find if they tried.
When he was younger he fell in love with her, she was from the other side of the tracks and her father and mother held
Show More
the college education over Amanada's head.Instead of going to unknown places with Dawson when school ended she took off to college, met her husband, now a dentist and an alcoholic with 3 kids, and one also had died from cancer.
He ended up in jail for an accident and he would send money to the the wife and kids of the guy he felt he killed. He had met Amanda through Tucker, who he lived with and had given him
a job fixing cars. Tucker had lost his wife recently and having Dawson there was good for him.
When Tucker died they both came to town and got time to talk to one another and were given instructions on the memorial service Tucker had wanted private and what to do with the things he owned.
Dawson was still having nightmares of an explosion that occurred on the oil rig. He keeps seeing the guy at different places, he knows he is seeing things and when he looks again the man is not there.
While at the cabin he tells her about his cousins, they are mean tempered.
She must return home and deal with family life again.
Love how the book all comes together at the very end, thus giving the title of this book true meaning.
Show Less
LibraryThing member Sagittar1us
Very touching book. As always, he does a great job including shocking twists.
LibraryThing member Shelby_Kuzma
I loved this book! Like most Nicholas Sparks books, it ended sadly but in the best way possible under the circumstances presented. I would definitely read this book again!
LibraryThing member loralu
Every time I thought I saw how this was going to end, it changed. Once again, Nicholas Sparks weaves a wonderful story.
LibraryThing member berthashaver
Very different from other Nicholas Sparks' books I have read. Unique twists of how our lives affect each other's lives.
LibraryThing member Laurie.Noles
One of my favorite books. You think you know what is going to happen but are surprised by the ending. Great curl up by the fire read.
LibraryThing member green7
Great Book. has its intense moments and demonstrates that true love lasts forever despite the things that have happened
LibraryThing member clayhollow
While I'm not normally a sappy romantic, I have recently finished two books by Nicholas Sparks, The Choice and The Best of Me.
When choosing books, I usually look for a good writer rather than a good story because I feel like a good writer can write any story and make it good. Mr. Sparks is just
In The Choice, each of the main characters must make a choice. One must choose between two men and the other must choose whether or not to pull the feeding tube on a coma patient.
In The Best of Me, high school sweethearts are reunited but their destiny is uncertain and, I must say, totally unpredictable. This one is reminiscent of The Notebook.
Like I mentioned before, I'm not usually into romance type novels but these are very well written and also very suspenseful. And both will keep you up late at night trying to find out what will happen next. I enjoyed them very much and I highly recommend anything by Nicholas Sparks. All of his books are National Best Sellers and three of them have been made into motion pictures.
Both were published by Grand Central Publishing.
When choosing books, I usually look for a good writer rather than a good story because I feel like a good writer can write any story and make it good. Mr. Sparks is just
Show More
such a writer as every book I have read by him has me on the edge wanting more and I always have this feeling of wanting to hurry up and find out what happens next. In The Choice, each of the main characters must make a choice. One must choose between two men and the other must choose whether or not to pull the feeding tube on a coma patient.
In The Best of Me, high school sweethearts are reunited but their destiny is uncertain and, I must say, totally unpredictable. This one is reminiscent of The Notebook.
Like I mentioned before, I'm not usually into romance type novels but these are very well written and also very suspenseful. And both will keep you up late at night trying to find out what will happen next. I enjoyed them very much and I highly recommend anything by Nicholas Sparks. All of his books are National Best Sellers and three of them have been made into motion pictures.
Both were published by Grand Central Publishing.
Show Less
LibraryThing member ottilieweber
How strong is first love? Dawson and Amanda thought their love could withhold anything while living in a town that hated their relationship. Yet, years after they broke up and created new lives for themselves they realize there might still be a spark. For me this book I was not sure what to expect.
Show More
The characters seemed one sided to me. Amanda toys with the idea of cheating which didn't sit well with me. There was a chapter where there was five different character's point of views. Oh well...gave Nicholas Sparks three chances... Show Less
LibraryThing member lyn369
I felt sorry fot the two main chararacters in this book. I felt like It was hard to keep from playing favorites for one of the chararacters, but then as I read the book I felt like I could have choosen the other chararacter for my favorite. But oh my gosh, I just cried toward the end, but the end
Show More
brought me into a crying jag. To find love and lost, is better then never to have loved at all, who ever said that. Show Less
Pages
320