May 14, 2001 11:24 PM
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''What can you say about a twenty-five year girl who died?
That she was beautiful.
And Brilliant.
That she loved Mozart and Bach.
And the Beatles.
And me.
Oliver Barret IV went to Harvard and Jenny Cavilleri to Radcliffe. He was rich, she was poor. He was sporty, she played music.
But they fell in love.
This is their story.''
The first time I came across Love Story, it was the movie and not the book. I was enthralled by the movie and when finally I got hold of the book, I was captivated by it. The book has been an emotional ride for nearly all the people I know. In those few hours while reading the book, I was snickering with laughter and weeping with bitter regret. Sometimes emotions overcome my senses when I read and I cry... This was the only book where I wept even after closing it. I read it for happiness, inspiration and love.
Since the time I first read Eric Segal, I have been a great admirer of his writing (try his other book Oliver's Story). And his first novel Love Story is simply a magnum opus. Love is the main theme because this whole book is based upon love and its many aspects. He makes the whole relationship so simple and pure somehow. You fall in love with not only the book but with Oliver and Jenny... the main characters who are from different socio-economic backgrounds; the heart and soul of the book.
Love Story is a phenomenal experience. The reader becomes so involved in the conflicts between family, friends, and the couple that every incident becomes personal and is taken to heart. Oliver's thoughts, his conversations with Jenny and the other characters are presented in an almost unassuming style which make them all very realistic.
The most intelligent thing said in this book is that ''Love means never having to say you're sorry.'' This book is good for anyone who thinks that love can be conquered by hate, but in reality love that is true lasts an eternity. It makes us cherish our relationship with the loved ones, and at the same time brings forth the inevitable... that every meeting has a parting. Reading it makes you feel that there is so less time to love. We pass our daily lives seldom acknowledging the love we have around us.
Once a person has read this novel, he will never be able to forget how strong the grip of love has on his heart or how tragedy can lead to forgiveness. We aren't all lucky enough to be as in love as these characters were, but the novel was written in such a way that we can all feel the both elation and the pain.
''True love never has a happy ending, that is because true love never has an ending.''
Love Story is optimistic without being inane, and profound without being pretentious.
Buy this book. Corrupt your children. Seduce a friend into reading it. A must read for anybody and everybody in search of love.
