The Choice (novel)

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The Choice
Author	Nicholas Sparks
Country	United States
Language	English
Genre(s)	Novel
Publisher	Grand Central Publishing
Publication date	24 September 2007
Media type	Print (Hardback)
Pages	288 pp (first edition, hardback)
ISBN	ISBN 978-0446579926 (first edition, hardback)

The Choice is a 2007 novel by acclaimed author Nicholas Sparks. It is the latest novel by the writer of The Notebook, and A Walk to Remember.

[edit] Plot summary

The story itself, like many other books by Sparks, takes place in the quaint, coastal town of Beaufort, North Carolina. A man named Travis Parker is amazed when he falls in love with his new neighbor Gabby Holland. Travis considered himself as happy as he could be staying single, and is surprised of his emotions. But in the midst of it all, Gabby has a boyfriend in nearby Morehead City, and Travis is faced with a tough question: How far would you go to keep the hope of love alive?

Part 1

The year is May 1996. Noticing that her beloved dog, Molly, might be pregnant, Gabby Holland quickly presumes that it is the work of her neighbor's, Travis Parker, dog, Moby. After storming into his backyard to confront Travis about his dog's irresponsibility, it is suggested that Gabby bring her dog to the vet to confirm. Gabby considers the thought and ultimately decides that her neighbor might be right. So after work, Gabby brings Molly to the local vet. The vet is no other than her neighbor, Travis Parker. It is confirmed that Molly is in fact pregnant.

When Molly gives birth to a litter of 6 puppies, Gabby panics when she finds her dog injured. She quickly runs to Travis' house where he brings Molly to his work. Molly ultimately becomes better and Gabby is grateful towards Travis.

A crush forms between these two. Travis believes Gabby is the most beautiful women he's ever seen, while Gabby thinks as him to be handsome but not appropriate for her.

Travis, then, invites his neighbor, Gabby, to go parasailing with his friends, among them, his sister, Stephanie. Stephanie and Gabby really hit it off. Stephanie suspects that Travis and Gabby like each other and help them out.

Stephanie invites Gabby to dinner with Travis but leaves way before it even begins. They eat shrimp-kababs and look at the stars. Here, Travis kisses Gabby, where she quickly pulls away. But she does admit to herself that she liked it. But decides it to be wrong for she does have a boyfriend, Kevin, who she constantly tells Travis that she is, in fact, in love with.

Kevin goes out of town to a convention for work. He works at an insurance company that his dad built. While out for the weekend, Gabby hangs out with Travis. But constantly tells him that she is in love with her boyfriend and only wants Travis as a friend. But throughout the weekend's events, Travis tells Gabby that he has fallen in love with her. Gabby returns the saying.

When her boyfriend is soon to return to town, Gabby has a choice to make. Whether to stay with her boyfriend of 4-years or go with her neighbor, Travis.

Part 2

The years is February 2007. It is revealed in this chapter that Gabby, does, in fact, choose Travis. They marry and have two girls, Christine and Lisa. It is also revealed that when driving from a David Copperfield show, that Travis gets in a car accident that puts Gabby in a coma. She has made a request that if she were in that position for longer than 3 months that Travis would let her go. He is left with the choice, after Gabby has been in a coma for three months, whether or not to do as she wishes. He decided for it, but, then, in the last minute goes against it. As Gabby's vegetated body is moved into a nursing home, Travis and his daughters slowly fall back to normal.

Travis gets a call sometime later to come to the nursing home. As he gets there, he presumes the worst, that his wife has possibly died. But it is quite the opposite. She has woken up.

When they bring Gabby home, Travis is fearful whenever he sees his wife asleep. Fearing that she might never wake up. For a great amount of time, he constantly does little things to Gabby as she sleeps, so that he knows that she is alive. One night, Travis strokes Gabby's arm and Gabby screams at him. Travis gets the message and decides that her action was so "Gabby-like." He is certain, here, that his wife is truly back.

[edit] Reviews

"THE CHOICE has all of the elements that we have come to expect from Sparks, not the least of which is characters a little larger than life who have made some choices that were bolder than the ones we ourselves made."^[1]

The novel is divided into two parts, and throughout the book the point of view switches between Gabby's and Travis's, although a bit more from Gabby's.

[edit] Footnotes