Nicholas Sparks
Nicholas Sparks is one of the world’s most beloved storytellers. All of his books have been New York Times bestsellers, with over 105 million copies sold worldwide, in more than 50 languages, including over 75 million copies in the United States alone.
Sparks wrote one of his best-known stories, The Notebook, over a period of six months at age 28. It was published in 1996 and he followed with the novels Message in a Bottle (1998), A Walk to Remember (1999), The Rescue (2000), A Bend in the Road (2001), Nights in Rodanthe (2002), The Guardian (2003), The Wedding (2003), True Believer (2005) and its sequel, At First Sight (2005), Dear John (2006), The Choice (2007), The Lucky One (2008), The Last Song (2009), Safe Haven (2010), The Best of Me (2011), The Longest Ride (2013), See Me (2015), Two by Two (2016), Every Breath (2018), The Return (2020), and The Wish (2021) as well as the 2004 non-fiction memoir Three Weeks With My Brother, co-written with his brother Micah. His twenty-third novel, Dreamland, was published on September 20, 2022.
Film adaptations of Nicholas Sparks novels, including The Choice, The Longest Ride, The Best of Me, Safe Haven (on all of which he served as a producer), The Lucky One, Message in a Bottle, A Walk to Remember, The Notebook, Nights in Rodanthe, Dear John and The Last Song, have had a cumulative worldwide gross of over three-quarters of a billion dollars. The Notebook has also been adapted into a musical, featuring music and lyrics by Ingrid Michaelson.
Sparks lives in North Carolina. He contributes to a variety of local and national charities, and is a major contributor to the Creative Writing Program (MFA) at the University of Notre Dame, where he provides scholarships, internships, and a fellowship annually. He co-founded The Epiphany School in New Bern, North Carolina in 2006. As a former full scholarship athlete (he still holds a track and field record at the University of Notre Dame) he also spent four years coaching track and field athletes at the local public high school. In 2009, the team he coached at New Bern High School set a World Junior Indoor Record in the 4×400 meters, as well as US High School National Records in the 800 Medley and 1600 Medley. Click to watch the Runner’s World video with Nicholas.
The Nicholas Sparks Foundation, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, was founded in 2011, to provide scholarships and fund educational programs for underprivileged and disadvantaged youth. Between the foundation, and the personal gifts of the Sparks family, more than $15 million dollars have been distributed to deserving charities, scholarship programs, and projects. Because the Sparks family covers all operational expenses of the foundation, 100% of donations are devoted to programs.
“Allie would love what you've done," he remarked. "She was always a softie when it came to things like this." I folded my hands in my lap. "I wish she could be there this weekend." Noah glanced at the stack of letters. I knew he was imagining Allie, and for a brief moment, he looked strangely younger. "So do I," he said.”
“It was one thing to divide the major assets, but how was it possible to divide the heart?”
“How had I become middle-aged while the ravages of time ignored her? I didn't know and didn't care, and before I could stop them, the words were already out. "You're beautiful," I murmured.”
“She smiled. "I need your opinion," she said. "What do you think about something sleeveless for this weekend? With a cinched waist and a medium train?" I brought my hand to my chin and considered this. "Sounds okay," I said. "But I think I'd look better in a tuxedo.”
“You weren't out there that long, were you? I can't bear to think that no one found you right away." Noah shook his head. "No more than a couple of hours, I'd guess." "A couple of hours!" Jane and Kate exclaimed. They froze, exchanging horrified looks. "Maybe a little longer. Hard to tell because the clouds were blocking the sun." "Longer?" Jane asked. Her hands were clenched into fists. "And I was wet, too. I guess it must have rained on me. Or maybe the sprinklers came on." "You could have died out there!" Kate cried. "Oh, it wasn't so bad. A little water never hurt anyone. The worst part was the raccoon when I finally came to. With the way he kept staring at me, I thought he might be rabid. Then he came at me." "You were attacked by a raccoon?" Jane looked as though she might faint. "Not really attacked. I fought him off before he could bite me." "It tried to bite you!" Kate cried. "Oh, it's no big deal. I've fought off raccoons before." Kate and Jane stared at each other with shell-shocked expressions, then turned toward their siblings. Appalled silence reigned before Noah finally smiled. He pointed his finger at them and winked. "Gotcha.”
“That she had somehow taken the initiative to learn my name should have struck me then, but it did not. Instead, as she stood on the street with the rain coming down and mascara running onto her cheeks, all I could think was that I'd never seen anyone more beautiful.”
“I love you, Allie. I am who I am because of you. You are every reason, every hope, and every dream I've ever had, and no matter what happens to us in the future, every day we are together is the greatest day of my life. I will always be yours.And, my darling, you will always be mine.”
“But she also sensed it wasn't enough. She wanted something else, something different, something more. Passion and romance, perhaps, or maybe quiet conversation in candlelit rooms, or perhaps something as simple as not being second.”
“because it was then, as he held her in his unwavering gaze, that she knew she was in love with him as well.”
“I know I can't change the past, but I change the future. I can change, too. And I will.”
“God is out there watching you, even when you're away from home and that if you put your trust in God, you'll be all right in the end.”
“A woman shaking in fear from demons in her mind, and the old man who loves her more deeply than life itself, crying softly in the corner, his face in his hands.”
“Perfect love did that to a person, and this had been perfect.”
“It might seem as the hardest thing to do, but you have to forget the guy who forgot about you.”
“While I'm not an expect in psychology, I'm of the opinion that anyone - even strangers - can sense the urgency of a request, and most people will usually do the right thing.”
“Love could be set in motion quickly, but true love needed time to grow into something strong and enduring.”
“That’s a wonderful story.”“He was a wonderful man. And when a man is that special, you know it sooner than you think possible. You recognize it instinctively, and you’re certain that no matter what happens, there will never be another one like him.”
“You could have told me earlier.”“You seemed so serious about the game. I didn’t want to bother you.”
“For some reason, it didn’t feel right. Victor’s words seemed to confirm that. There was another reason that he’d come here. Falling in love with Elizabeth might have been part of it. But that wasn’t all. Something else was coming.There is more.”
“Based on her experience with men, most assumed that when you talked to them about a problem or dilemma, they were expected to offer an opinion, even when all you wants was for them to listen.”
“Most people don’t know how to appreciate the silence. They can’t help talking.”
“There is nothing like love. You should try it.”Thibault shrugged. “Maybe one day.”
“Because it protects you. And when I jumped from the Humvee, I believed it would save me, too, in the same way you believe it will always save you.” “No, I don’t,” Thibault began.“Then why, my friend, do you still carry it with you?”
“I knew it wasn't fair, I knew it was wrong, but I couldn't help it. And after a while, the anger I felt just sort of became part of me, like it was the only way I knew how to handle the grief. I didn't like who I'd become, but I was stuck in this horrible cycle of questions and blame.”
“Little girls. They could melt the toughest hearts.”
“Man and wife were supposed to stay together because they'd made their vows in front of God and family.”
“You should be kissed everyday, every hour, every minute.”
“Dear John, There's so much I want to say to you, but I'm not sure where I should begin. Should I start by telling you that I love you? Or that the days I've spent with you have been the happiest in my life? Or that in the short time I've known you, I've come to believe that we were meant to be together? I could say all those things and all would be true, but as I reread them, all I can think is that I wish I were with you now, holding your hand and watching your elusive smile.”
“But most of all, I learned that it’s possible for two people to fall in love all over again, even when there’s been a lifetime of disappointment between them.”
“Love, after all, always said more about those who felt it than it did about the ones they loved.”
“That life isn't fair?" Yeah, that, of course. But I also learned that it's possible to go on, no matter how impossible it seems, and that in time, the grief... lessens.”
“Life, he decided, was for living, not for having, and he wanted to experience every moment that he could.”
“My daddy used to tell me 'the first time you fall in love it changes your life forever, and no matter how hard you try, the feelin' never goes away. This girl you been tellin' me about was your first love. And no matter what you do, she'll stay with you forever.”
“For them, it was nothing but an ordinary day on an ordinary day on an ordinary weekend, but for her, there was something revelatory about the notion that wonderful moments like these existed.”
“Allie noticed it all, every sound, every thought. Her senses had come alive, invigorating her, and she felt her mind drifting through the last few weeks.”
“The scariest thing about distance is that you don’t know whether they’ll miss you or forget you.”
“Beauty might prevail in the very short term, but in the medium and longer terms, cultural norms - primarily those values and norms influenced by family - were more important.”
“Because you aren't just someone I loved back then. You were my best friend, my best self, and I can't imagine giving that up again." He hesitated searching for the right words. "You might not understand, but I gave you the best of me, and after you left, nothing was ever the same.”
“I don't know that I've ever felt as happy as I did that day, but then again, it was always like that when we were together. I never wanted it to end.”
“It's not such a bad thing. Change isn't always for the best.”
“Everyone makes mistakes, even if some are worse than others. Accidents happen.”
“Even if I thought he as perfect for her." She turned to face him. "What were we thinking?""We weren't," he said. "We were in love.”
“It was easy to idealize someone you barely knew.”
“stay True To Pursue”
“I tell myself that I know you,and then when I think about it, I realize that I don't.”
“The most ordinary things could be made extraordinary.”
“I've learned that memories can have a physical, almost living presence.”
“Young Noah: [humming] Bum, bum, bum, bum, bum, bum, bum, bum, bum, bum, bum, bum. Young Allie: [laughing] You're a terrible singer. Young Noah: I know. Young Allie: [laying her head on his shoulder] But I like this song. [they continue dancing in the street to I'll Be Seeing You]”
“It all comes down to who's by your side.”
“You can't see the forest for the trees.”