Pl. Catalunya, 39-41

08820 El Prat de Llobregat T 93.370.51.52 b.prat.am@diba.es

Horari: dilluns de 15.30 a 21 Dimarts a divendres de 10 a 21

Dissabtes de 10 a 19

May 2011

ENGLISH READING CLUB

ENJOY READING!

NICHOLAS SPARKS

Dear John

NICHOLAS SPARKS (Nebraska,USA, 31 Dec. 1965)

----------------------------------- BIOGRAPHY

----------------------------------------------- ORA

Nicholas Charles Sparks is an internationally-bestselling American novelist and screenwriter. He has 17 published novels, with themes that include Christian faith, love, tragedy and fate. Six have been adapted to film.

Sparks was raised Roman Catholic and is of German, Czech, English and Irish ancestry. He and his wife are devout Catholics, and are raising their children in the Catholic faith. "I was raised Catholic, baptized, confirmed, Sunday School, went to Notre Dame, go to confession, go to church weekly," the author says.

His father was pursuing graduate studies, and the family moved a great deal, so by the time Sparks was 8, he had lived in Watertown, Minnesota, Los Angeles, and Grand Island, Nebraska. He graduated in 1984, then enrolling at the University of Notre Dame. Sparks majored in business finance and graduated with honors in 1988.

In 1992, Sparks began selling pharmaceuticals and in 1993 was transferred to Greenville, SC. It was there that he wrote another novel in his spare time, The Notebook. Two years later, he was discovered by literary agent Theresa Park, who picked The Notebook out of her agency's slush pile, liked it, and offered to represent him. In October 1995, Park secured a $1 million advance for The Notebook from Time Warner Book Group. The novel was published in October 1996 and made the New York Times best-seller list in its first week of release.

-------------------------Dear John (2007)

An angry rebel, John Tyree dropped out of school and enlisted in the Army, not knowing what else to do with his life—until he meets the girl of his dreams, Savannah. While on leave, staying with his father in his hometown, John spends his days at the beach. In a selfless act to save young woman possessions from the ocean, John meets Savannah Curtis. Their mutual attraction quickly grows into the kind of love that leaves Savannah waiting for John to finish his tour of duty, and John wanting to settle down with the woman who has captured his heart.

Just as John is about to end his tour, 9/11 changes everything. John feels it is his duty to re-enlist. And sadly, the long separation finds Savannah falling in love with someone else. "Dear John," the letter read...and with those two words, a heart was broken and two lives were changed forever.

Returning home on leave because of his father’s illness, John remembers the summer that he fell in love. After his fathers death John takes a trip to Savannah’s hometown and must come to grips with the fact that Savannah, now married, is still his true love. Together Savannah and John face their own struggles of acceptance of what their lives have become all while facing the hardest decisions of their lives, learning to let go of the ones they love.

-----------------------------SELECTED WORKS

Published Works

• The Notebook (October 1996)

• Message in a Bottle (April 1998)

• A Walk to Remember (October 1999)

• The Rescue (September 2000)

• A Bend in the Road (September 2001)

• Nights in Rodanthe (September 2002)

• The Guardian (April 2003)

• The Wedding (September 2003)

• Three Weeks With My Brother (April 2004)

• True Believer (April 2005)

• At First Sight (October 2006)

• Dear John (October 2007)

• The Choice (September 2007)

• The Lucky One (October 2008)

• The Last Song (September 2009)

• Safe Haven (September 2010)

Film adaptations

• Message in a Bottle (1999), A Walk to Remember (2002), The Notebook (2004), Nights in Rodanthe (2008) Dear John (2010)The Last Song (2010) . True Believer and The Lucky One are expected to be released as a film in 2011.