Finally managed to finish this book on my flight this evening, come to think of it, I read more than two-thirds of this book on the plane, as often has been the case with most of my serious readings lately. This is all before I have had a chance to watch the film (in theatres in Hong Kong with movie posters plastered around town), something I hope to do soon. I think I was first attracted to the book by the movie version cover of Anne Hathaway and Jim Sturgess kissing. Somehow I cannot imagine another actress playing the lead for this film adaptation.
I’ve always imagined it to be a rather melancholy story as soon as I read the short introduction on the back cover (reproduced on the book’s Amazon page as well), yet there was this inexplicable urge to read it, as if I knew the process of digesting this rather melancholy story would be an enjoyable one.
I suppose it’s a story that I would best describe as touching, not in the cheesy, idealistic way typical of many Hollywood feel-good stories that are often the basis of romantic comedies over the years, but a story that actually feels real, despite its being set in the UK (with a small portion in Paris). What the author manages to accomplish is not so much to write a story that makes the reader feel all warm and fuzzy inside, but rather he pieces together a tale of life, of two people whose lives are intertwined from that one fateful day. David Nicholls manages to make the story real, so real that there are bits and pieces that the reader, regardless of having ever lived in the UK or anywhere in the West, would find easy to relate.
It’s a story about friendships and love, about all the emotions, quasi-emotions and all the rest that one goes through when two people’s lives are intertwined.
It’s a story about the power of fate, about the missed opportunities and the unbreakable link that draws two people towards each other and finally allows their lives to become in sync, and then just as abruptly and mercilessly severs that link.
This is a story neither easily categorized nor simply defined, and that is what makes it such a wonderful reflection of life and love.
It’s a story one would read and sigh, and as you approach the inevitable end, feel a different sense of warmth wash over you, and one may find oneself showing an appreciative smile.
This is a story worth reading, with one’s heart.
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