Independent Reading Reflection

Over the summer I read five books for a total of 1308 pages. I read three fiction novels and two realistic fiction novels. For me one of my favorite books was the Dear John by Nicholas Sparks, which I had been wanting to read and finally got around to it. Right from the start of the book, you could tell it would be a summer love story, but what I didn’t realize was how much you could feel just by how Nicholas Sparks described their feelings. As John went off to Germany for war, I could feel Savannah’s sadness and fear as she thought this could be the last time she could see him alive. Not to mention how hurt John was to come home to find Savannah happily married and moved on with a new life. Overall, I loved how descriptive Dear John was and how you could feel like you were falling in love, just like them. Even though his books are usually stereotypical, The Choice also by Nicholas Sparks was a great book I read this summer. Instead of summer romance, this time it was forbidden love. When neighbors Travis and Gabby start off with a heated argument, Gabby soon finds herself with a strange attraction to the fun-loving, wild Travis. One problem, she has a boyfriend, Kevin, whom she now has to choose between him and Travis as her love for him grows more and more. I loved this book because like Dear John, it had a love story but instead, it started out with hatred and disapproval of each other but slowly grew to their love. Also in The Choice, Nicholas Sparks used great description of feelings and sights. For example, parasailing high above the sound he described exactly what they saw and felt and I felt like I were right there with them a hundred feet above the water too. I can’t leave out that first night they met; Gabby was fuming at Travis when she thought his dog got her perfect, purebred collie pregnant. Not to mention the night Travis first kissed her and she suddenly thought what life could be like with Travis, instead of Kevin. I chose Dear John and The Choice as my favorite books from this summer because they both had great description and plot lines, even if you could somewhat predict the ending . I love when I can picture everything that is going on in a book and remember almost every detail, and these both did that for me.