The Adventure Awaits Book Club December 2024 book choice was One Day in December by Josie Silver.
Y’all may be tired of me choosing love stories, but I can’t help myself. I’ll try to persuade future Ariel to branch out more! I would love to see comments on this blog, emails, or comments on my author Instagram with any suggestions of books we should check out!
I’m going to pull the description of the book off Amazon. I believe the back of the book says something similar if not word for word, but I don’t have the book with me as I write this.
The book is exactly what the description says it is. I knew what to expect because I am a lover of love stories. It’s not that I didn’t love it… I think it matches perfectly with the drama needed for an entertaining story. I think I’m basing it on my own perception of love.
Why does love have to be so hard? Why do some of us have to go through so much trauma and pain to get to a “happy ending?” Why do we stay with people longer than we should simply because we don’t want to hurt that person?
All I could think about during this book is “Why?”
Why didn’t Laurie tell Sarah sooner?
Why did Laurie and Jack have that moment and then Jack not end his relationship?
Why did Laurie not tell Sarah about the moment?
Why did Laurie settle for Oscar?
Why do Laurie and Jack feel so strongly for each other?
I’ll come back to my thoughts on these why questions. I want to comment on love at first sight. It’s a cute concept. You see someone and you’re like, “Yep, I’m going to marry that person.” I get it. The first time I saw my partner, when we happened to coincidentally be at a store at the same time after texting for a day, I think I became dumb for the first time in my life. I didn’t expect him to be so beautiful. I literally remember zero of what I said in that moment. Of course my situation is a little different since we had texted briefly and the general “love at first sight” concept is two complete strangers. Regardless, I get how one could try to argue the concept. There’s something about that moment of dumbness, or whatever someone might refer to that moment as, that sticks with you as a pivotal moment, especially if a relationship does move forward with that person.
Regarding the characters in this book, I didn’t fully understand their connection. Sure, there was the first moment they saw each other, but they didn’t have what comes after that.
I don’t love my partner because he has a beautiful face and drool worthy eyes. I love him because of how his face lights up when he throws a fishing pole into a body of water. I love him because he has multiple different levels of laughter and his family are generally the ones to bring him to his most intense and arguably most beautiful laughter level. I love him because his brain comes up with the most hilariously creative ideas and he generally solves every problem he encounters with unique solutions. I could keep going, but it’s not necessary to make my point.
Laurie and Jack didn’t really have any significant moments. There weren’t any moments that I felt were big enough to have a list of reasons why they felt so deeply for each other. You don’t really get to see them build the deep connection that one would think about when referring to a “joyous, heartwarming, and immensely moving love story.”
I’m overthinking this and it’s really not that serious, but I just want people to find true connections. Laurie clung to this idea of Jack for so long and a few weak moments led to the idea that he was meant for her. The same goes for Jack. He couldn’t stop thinking about her, but I really just don’t understand why not.
Laurie settles for another person despite having feelings for Jack and again, why? Why do we do that? Why do humans settle for someone that they feel less desire for than someone else? I’ve written on how loneliness sucks, but so does longing for someone and regretting saying how you truly feel.
Again, I know the plot line needed to be what it was to meet the needs of readers everywhere, but hopefully we’re not settling for love stories like this one in real life.
The ending might be super cute, but it’s not cute enough to be worth the literal 10 years of suffering they endured just to make it to that ending.
I know everything happens in its own time. I know not every relationship is easy to navigate. Some people may not be ready for a relationship that they may be ready for after years pass. But, like… don’t pretend you don’t have feelings for someone just because it’s easier. Don’t settle for someone else because you’re lonely and might get over the feelings eventually.
Also, don’t lie to your best friend about her new boyfriend being someone you “love.” Geez. Communicate people. I know it sucks hurting people, but it’s probably better to get it out early rather than traumatize your friends later when the truth finally comes out. This probably doesn’t happen often, but it seems like good advice.
I don’t really enjoy cheating storylines and this book had one. It’s not the worst, but it’s bad enough because of how long these characters had these feelings and pretended they didn’t to both of their partners.
I think one thing I learned from this book is related to grief. If you lost your parent, or someone close to you, who would you want to talk to about it? If you’re in a relationship and the first person you think of (outside of the other parent, siblings, and/or close relatives) isn’t your partner, there might be a problem. Grief really shows who is there for you in life, and I think that’s important to pay attention to in relationships.
In my previous marriage, I lost a childhood friend, and my husband blew it off like it meant nothing. That created a major hole in our relationship that never filled. I never spoke with him like I should have about it though. It’s interesting to see what you ignore and tolerate once you’re out of a relationship. I shouldn’t have been scared to talk to my husband about something that bothered me.
I know my AABC blogs tend to verge into areas outside of a simple book review but that’s what I love about books. They help you speak on topics that are difficult. They help you imagine a world different than your own. They help you consider perspectives that you might not otherwise.
I think the book is cute enough. I enjoyed the best friend relationship, but I was bummed that a huge lie lasted so long through most of it. Like I mentioned, the ending is cute but not real life cute! I would recommend the book for the ease of reading at least!
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The Adventure Awaits Book Club January 2025 book choice is The Secret Zoo by Bryan Chick!
Ariel Pierce 