I think we can all agree that The Notebook is the best movie of all time. Not only is it romantic and touching, but it introduced America to the perfection that is Ryan Gosling.
Remember life pre-Ryan? Yeah, I don’t want to either.
The Notebook also marked a pretty important cultural milestone: the Nicholas Sparks movie trend. Now, I’ll be the first to admit that I’m not the biggest fan of Sparks’ writing. I’m probably in the minority here (even in the BookTrib offices!), but it doesn’t matter. Regardless of how I feel about the books, I am deeply, deeply in love with the movie adaptations. No one does cheese like Sparks. Somehow his storylines are the perfect combination of romantic, dramatic and ridiculously over-the-top. Plus everyone is always making out in the rain.
Thank heavens that most of America agrees with me and we get a Sparks movie just about every year. This year, it’s The Choice, which comes out February 5 and it looks AWESOME:
Written in 2007, The Choice is a slightly older Sparks’ novel that tells the story of Travis and Gabby who start out as neighbors but slowly fall in love. When Gabby gets in a devastating car accident, Travis has to make some hard choices about her future care.
Releasing The Choice proves that Sparks is now looking back on his older novels as possible movie candidates, instead of just his newest bestsellers. This opens up a world of Sparks’ novels that could potentially make it to the big screen. So Mr. Sparks, if you’re not sure what to adapt next, here’s a little inspiration: we at BookTrib think you should consider your 2000 novel, The Rescue.
Here’s why: The Rescue deals with a single mother, Denise, who’s trying to raise a disabled son on a waitress’s salary. One night she gets into a horrible accident and is rescued by a sexy local firefighter named Taylor. But Kyle, Denise’s son, is missing from the car and Taylor has to try and save them both. Pretty straightforward, right? Only, it turns out that Taylor is emotionally damaged, closed off from the people around him, and all of his relationships have been with women who need rescuing. When they demand more from him, he leaves. As Denise and Taylor get closer, it becomes clear that he’s the real person who needs to be rescued and she fights hard to hold onto his heart.
Cute kid? Check. Emotionally complicated characters? Check. Lots of making out? Check and check. This novel is guaranteed to be an instant movie success, so please, Hollywood, consider The Rescue as Sparks’ 2017 big screen hit.
Also, can we suggest Channing Tatum for Taylor? Because, you know.
