The Paw Print

Dear John
by Mai-Lan

The chick flick of 2010 might just be Dear John. This movie is an adaptation of a novel written by romantics’ favorite author, Nicholas Sparks. The novel was a best seller and loved by readers. Sparks writes many books you might be familiar with including A Walk To Remember, The Notebook and A Message in a Bottle—these have become blockbuster hits at the theatres.

John Tyree, the heroic hottie, is a young man looking for balance in his life. He enlists in the Army, since life at home is tense. He and his father do not see eye to eye.

While on leave in the Army he meets Savannah. Their friendship kindles when John dives into the ocean to retrieve Savannah’s purse. Their relationship blossoms into romance, only read in fairy tales.

Savannah tells John she believes that his father is suffering from a disease. His dad is obsessed with his coin collection and repeats his daily schedule over and over. John and his dad are distant in their relationship. John refuses to listen to Savanna and denies that it’s possible for his father to be suffering from Asperger’s Syndrome.

John finally accepts the fact and comes to terms with his father’s condition. At the end of John’s leave, John and Savannah agree to look up during a full moon and remember each other—when they were apart. John promises to marry Savannah after his deployment.

They exchange letters during his service. In a letter Savannah sends she begins with “Dear John” and proclaims her love for him. John is eager to come home to her.

This is a bittersweet and heart wrenching love story. I hope you will read the book or watch it on DVD so you can find out for yourself how this story ends. All of Sparks’s novels are similar—couples meeting, falling in love and then losing that love or growing apart. John, the heart-throb, will capture the hearts of many readers, and Sparks will have you in tears by the end of the movie.