It is very difficult to write something about a book that has been so hyped, discussed and praised the world over. As I discovered, Love Story is a poignant tale that touches your heart and leaves its imprint forever. We meet Oliver who narrates the whole experience as to how he met, loved and lost the most important person in his life, Jennifer.
Love Story (1970); the film was a precursor to the book starring Ali MacGraw, Ryan O’Neal. Erich Segal has said that he based the character of Oliver on Vice President Al Gore and Gore’s Harvard roommate Tommy Lee Jones.
The book has the one of the most famous and touching beginnings of a novel. I have to quote the opening lines:
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What can you say about a twenty-five-year-old girl who died?
That she was beautiful. And brilliant. That she loved Mozart and Bach. And the Beatles. And me.
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And thus begins the classic. I somehow found it a little strange that the central characters fell in love very easily or rather quickly. But I guess that is the beauty of love, which happens just like that. Oliver finds Jenny a little repulsive in the beginning but soon that same quality intrigues him further to knowing her more. The author’s entertaining style of writing is visible in this observation by Oliver when he first sees Jennifer:
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I got an A minus on the exam, coincidentally the same grade I assigned to Jenny’s legs when she first walked from behind that desk.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Jenny on the other hand is so sure and confident about herself that she simply scores over Oliver no matter how hard he tries to win their verbal duels. Their playful banter is one of the main highlights of the book and it does not stop even after they get married. There is a reference in the third page of the novel about an Indian bag owned by Jennifer. I am curious to know whether the author was referring to a Red Indian bag or an Indian bag (as in plain Indian). The story is unique because of its many beautiful moments like Oliver’s marriage proposal, Jenny’s simplicity in thoughts, their supposedly do-it-yourself-wedding etc.
Jenny’s character wins your heart as she unsuccessfully tries to thaw the relations between Oliver and his father, how she spurs Oliver on (in law school studies, his hockey games) and so many more moments. Oliver himself is so endearing and likeable that you can’t stop laughing when he actually convinces Jenny to name their would-be son, Bozo (yikes!!!).
Although the reader knows beforehand that Jenny is supposedly going to die, you somehow get so involved in the plot that you don’t want her to leave Oliver. The ending of the book is so simple and stark that I had to reread the chapter to enforce the ending of the story. Many people cry at the end of this epic novel, which was something, that had made me really curious to read the book. At the end when Oliver breaks down in his father’s arms, it is safe to say that I was pretty numb with the whole experience.
Jenny’ final words are a simple ’’Thanks, Ollie’’. I think along with the now famous quote from this book “Love means never having to say you are sorry”, the author should have also mentioned that love also means never having to say thanks.
Its a very unpretentious small book; just over 150 pages but once you start reading it you will finish it in one go. What’s different about this novel is that the bulk of the novel consists of actual conversations between the characters, which is very realistic. This tragic story of love inspires and enriches anyone who reads it.