The Last Song

I have read Nicholas Sparks books before and, of course, watched The Notebook many times but I have never listened to one of his books. I decided to give The Last Song a go. Nicholas Sparks is the master of tearjerkers so I should have been prepared for this book but I apparently did not know what it was actually about when I started listening.

Ronnie is 17 and has just graduated from high school in New York City. The last thing she wants to do is spend the summer in North Carolina with her dad, who left the family a few years back. After getting off to a rocky start, she meets Will, a very rich, attractive boy who she does not like at first. As she gets to know him, they fall in love. As the summer comes to an end, Ronnie begins to notice that her dad is coughing a lot and he seems really tired. Eventually, he tells her the truth about his illness and why he wanted her and her brother to spend the summer with him.

This is probably one of the saddest books I have ever listened to. Like all of his books I have read so far, The Last Song is touching and so sad it’s impossible not to cry. I listen in the car on my way to and from work and I find the closer I get to the end, the more often I have to switch back and forth from the CD to the radio.

Despite Nicholas Sparks being a rather prolific writer, this book is as solid and as good as any other he has written. Be prepared for a good cry if you listen to this story.

-L.T.