Week 6 - The Wedding

I strayed away from reading for a long time. I started reading novels from Nicholas Sparkswho writes dramatic, fictional romances. I am a hopeless romantic, so a good love story is for me. I've read A Bend in the Road, Dear John, Nights in Rodanthe, and The Wedding. I didn't read The Notebook, but I did watch the movie. Out of all his work, The Wedding happened to be my favorite.

The Wedding is a novel by Nicholas Sparks. It was published in September 2003 by Warner Books. The story is a follow-up to his previous novel The Notebook. Noah and Allie, from The Notebook, have a daughter named Jane, who is one of the main characters of the book. William, Jane's husband and the main character, has realized that he has neglected his 30 year marriage to the point where he didn't know if Jane even loved him anymore. He forgot their anniversary, which crushed her. He vowed to make it up to her the next year, so he was trying to think of something extraordinary. He speaks with Jane's father Noah quite a bit asking or advice. Noah and Allie seemed to have had the fairytale marriage. He takes a few weeks vacation to make a surprise for her, but when he starts planning, his daughter, Anna, breaks the news that she wants to get married...in two weeks. This is the same time that Wilson wants to have this surprise. Jane is very excited to help their daughter plan her wedding, so the plans have changed...supposedly.

Everything seems to come together quickly for their Anna's wedding. They had the location, a caterer, someone to come and play for the reception, landscapers to fix the location, and all with very little effort. On the day of the wedding, Anna is upstairs getting ready with her dress and Jane is waiting for her to come. When Anna finally makes her appearance, she isn't wearing her wedding dress. They break the news that this isn't actually Anna's wedding. This is Jane's wedding, re-done. Wilson planned it for the entire year, trying to give her something she's always wanted; her dream wedding.

I know what you're thinking. "Why in the world would she give the ending?" There is so much more to the book than I can actually put into words. The story has them being married for 30 years, and they can still fall in love all over again. Romance doesn't have to die with the years. I would recommend Nicholas Sparks to anyone who loves a good love story. It isn't a strong type of love novel, like the one with naked people on the front of it, but one with a great story attached. He has made me love reading again. I plan on going soon to find another one of his books to read.