Review: Dear John

Dear John by Nicholas Sparks
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

"What does it truly mean to love another?... I fell in love with her when we were together, then fell deeper in love with her in the years we were apart"

John Tyree on the outside seems like a normal crew cut soldier, an isolated and rebel teenager who enlisted in the army to get his act together for his future. His father is also a very isolated and particular man, in which persuades John to enlist as well. His father's only joy is his coin collection, in which John took great interest in as a child, but as he matured, he believed there were far more important things than bonding with your lonely father. During a furlough in 2000 when he returns for a week in his hometown of Wilmington, North Carolina, he spent his day surfing at the beach. While sitting on the pier, he said hello to a brunette and he "heard something friendly and understanding in her voice, something akin to coming home...". Her bag filled with all of her belongings fell into the ocean, and John made a darn good first impression by retrieving her bag in the ocean for her.

"Up close, she was more beautiful than I'd first realized, but it had less to do with the way she looked than the way she was. It wasn't her slightly gap-toothed smile, it was the casual way she swiped at a loose strand of hair, the easy way she held herself..."

After John's rescue of Savannah's bag, she offered him to eat dinner at their rented house right along the beach, in which he complied. She described to him that the 20+ college students living at the home were to build houses as she was for a club at her school, but Savannah simply had a heart for the family that desperately needed the home, where the other sum of college students wanted a spring fling of sorts on the beach. Savannah and John soon begin to fall for each other, and in the single week they were together, it was pure bliss for the two of them, and it was a heartache for John to return to Germany for a year. On the last night before John leaves, Savannah takes him to the house she is in the midst of building where she finally tells him she loves him. This part is the crucial part of their relationship because they both feel the same way about each other, oh and because there will be tears shed here as well. When Savannah herself brings up wanting to visit John's father, it is so sentimental and remarkable that you can't help but fall more in love with Savannah and John. (I am intentionally leaving a lot of there week together out because I do not do this book justice, their chemistry is so relatable and you can't help but fall in love with their relationship).

"She had the rare ability to be exactly what people needed when she was with them and yet still remain true to herself. I couldn't think of anyone who remotely resembled her in appearance or personality, and I wondered again why she'd taken a liking to me."

"One instant we were talking, and in the next she leaned toward me. For a second, I wondered whether kissing her would break the spell we both were under, but it was too late to stop. And when her lips met mine, I knew that I could live to be a hundred and visit every country in the world, but nothing would ever compare to that single moment when I first kissed the girl of my dreams and knew that my love would last forever."

On one of their final days together before John's leave is over, Savannah gifts John a book to help John on his relationship with his father. He totally flips out and takes her intentions the wrong way. She is simply wanting to help John with his troubles. On the way out, he punches Savannah's best friend, Tim, and back home he ventures. The best of him starts to read the book and he can't help but be aware of his father and his relationship. He apologizes to Savannah and leaves for Germany on a good note (Also, the letter Savannah leaves John with makes you cry uncontrollably, just an FYI)

While John is in Germany for the next year, Savanah and he exchange phone calls and letters nonstop, like every week, and each one is better than the last. After counting down the days, his leave is fastly approaching, and he can't wait to be in Savannah's arms. The day finally comes, and Savannah is waiting with open arms! However, since John has been gone, Savannah's life seemed to continue, and she is busy with school and all of her friends and appears to have no time for John. Fast forward, John returns back to Germany and they realize that they both still love each other more than any two people can.

Okay, so this is the heart wrenching and cry worthy part that will stick with till eternity... John is in the twin tower attacks of 9/11 and days after, he receives a letter from Savannah that she loves someone else, and she is unwilling to keep their relationship. She says its too hard on her and she is tired of waiting for something that is never going to be there. John is completely heartbroken (and so is the reader), and he decides to extend his time in the army. His father soon after dies as well, and he plays a crucial role in his life with Savannah at the end. John returns to Wilmington for his father's funeral, and instinct tells him to drive to Savannah's ranch. He finds where she lives, and sees that she is married. I am not going to say anything else except that this book is one to remember. The end is very unexpected and it will leave you crying as much as I did. I hope you treasure this read as much as I have!!



View all my reviews