Genre Fiction
![Nicholas Sparks - [object Object] author](https://res.cloudinary.com/readsomnia/image/upload/authors/a_a_nicholas_sparks.jpg)
The Longest Ride
From the dark days of WWII to present-day North Carolina, this New York Times bestseller shares the lives of two couples overcoming destructive secrets-and finding joy together.
Ira Levinson is in trouble. Ninety-one years old, stranded, and injured after a car crash, he struggles to maintain consciousness-until a blurry image materializes beside him: his beloved wife, Ruth, who passed away nine years ago. Urging him to hang on, she forces him to remain alert by recounting the stories of their lifetime together-how they met, the precious paintings they collected together, the dark days of WWII, and the war's effect on their families. Ira knows Ruth can't possibly be in the car with him, but he clings to her words and his memories, reliving the sorrows and joys that defined their marriage.
A few miles away, at a local bull-riding event, a Wake Forest College senior's life is about to change. Recovering from a recent break-up, Sophia Danko meets a young cowboy named Luke, who bears little resemblance to the privileged frat boys she's used to encountering at school. Through Luke, Sophia is introduced to a world in which the stakes of survival and success, ruin and reward-even life and death-loom large in everyday life. As she and Luke fall in love, Sophia finds herself imagining a future far removed from her plans-a future that Luke has the power to rewrite . . . if the secret he's keeping doesn't destroy it first.
Ira and Ruth. Sophia and Luke. Two couples who have little in common, and who are separated by years and experience. Yet their lives will converge with unexpected poignancy, reminding us all that even the most difficult decisions can yield extraordinary journeys beyond despair and beyond death, to the farthest reaches of the human heart. The Longest Ride is a tale of timeless love, filled with unforgettable characters and unforeseen twists. It's a story about the choices we make, and how the most difficult decisions can lead us to where we were meant to be.
Ira Levinson is in trouble. Ninety-one years old, stranded, and injured after a car crash, he struggles to maintain consciousness-until a blurry image materializes beside him: his beloved wife, Ruth, who passed away nine years ago. Urging him to hang on, she forces him to remain alert by recounting the stories of their lifetime together-how they met, the precious paintings they collected together, the dark days of WWII, and the war's effect on their families. Ira knows Ruth can't possibly be in the car with him, but he clings to her words and his memories, reliving the sorrows and joys that defined their marriage.
A few miles away, at a local bull-riding event, a Wake Forest College senior's life is about to change. Recovering from a recent break-up, Sophia Danko meets a young cowboy named Luke, who bears little resemblance to the privileged frat boys she's used to encountering at school. Through Luke, Sophia is introduced to a world in which the stakes of survival and success, ruin and reward-even life and death-loom large in everyday life. As she and Luke fall in love, Sophia finds herself imagining a future far removed from her plans-a future that Luke has the power to rewrite . . . if the secret he's keeping doesn't destroy it first.
Ira and Ruth. Sophia and Luke. Two couples who have little in common, and who are separated by years and experience. Yet their lives will converge with unexpected poignancy, reminding us all that even the most difficult decisions can yield extraordinary journeys beyond despair and beyond death, to the farthest reaches of the human heart. The Longest Ride is a tale of timeless love, filled with unforgettable characters and unforeseen twists. It's a story about the choices we make, and how the most difficult decisions can lead us to where we were meant to be.
Editorial Reviews
"Epic Sparks . . . showcases the author's most accomplished work to date . . . There are moments of perfection . . . Reaching not only young and old, the novel is commingled with enough cowboy action, literary flavor, and a maturing gift for dialogue to reach across the sexes."―Mountain Times (NC)
"These parallel love stories are each rich in their own right, but together, they tell a broader and more complicated tale of love's growth and evolution over time . . . some surprising twists right up until the very end."―BookReporter.com
"For Sparks, weighty matters of the day remain set pieces, furniture upon which to hang timeless tales of chaste longing and harsh fate."―Washington Post
"Sparks is a poet . . . a master."―Philadelphia Inquirer
"These parallel love stories are each rich in their own right, but together, they tell a broader and more complicated tale of love's growth and evolution over time . . . some surprising twists right up until the very end."―BookReporter.com
"For Sparks, weighty matters of the day remain set pieces, furniture upon which to hang timeless tales of chaste longing and harsh fate."―Washington Post
"Sparks is a poet . . . a master."―Philadelphia Inquirer
Readers Top Reviews
Zaesha Correa Tri
This book is amazing, not only is the movie that’s based off of this book great, the story telling within the movie and book are so great
Aletheia KnightsZ
Senior art history major Sophia Danko doesn't have high expectations when she joins a few of her sorority sisters to attend a bull-riding event and barn dance; the main thing she's looking for is distraction after a painful breakup, and when her ex shows up at the dance, already a little drunk and looking for her, even that seems to be out of reach - until a handsome bull rider comes to her aid. Sophia spends the rest of the evening talking with Luke, and accepts his invitation to come over to his ranch the next day to ride horses. Within a few weeks, the relationship shows signs of getting serious, but before they can plan a future together, Luke and Sophia have to navigate the reality of their very different backgrounds and ambitions - and Luke's been keeping a secret that just might ruin everything. Ninety-year-old Ira Levinson should know better than to drive at night in bad weather, especially after he's started to suspect he's lost his way, but the personal importance of his errand overrides his judgment. When his car goes off the road on a mountain highway and plunges down a steep slope, leaving him severely injured, Ira doesn't have much hope of survival. It's the memory of his beloved wife, Ruth, whose loss he still mourns after nearly a decade, that keeps him clinging to life. As night becomes day and the snow continues to fall, Ira loses himself in memories of a romance that was still going strong after sixty years. Ira and Ruth, Luke and Sophia. Two very different couples, one at the end of "this longest of rides, this thing called life," the other just beginning. In "The Longest Ride," Nicholas Sparks treats readers to two satisfying love stories. Throughout most of the novel, he alternates a chapter of Ira's story with a couple of chapters about Luke and Sophia. It's not until seven-eighths of the way through the novel that the two stories connect, but when they do, several lives will be forever changed. Nicholas Sparks is at his best when celebrating the deep and time-proven love between couples who have been together for decades, 'til death do them part. "The Notebook" is a strictly ordinary romance, made unforgettable by a frame story featuring the lovers grown old together. I enjoyed "The Best of Me," but the five pages about Tuck and Clara were the only part that moved me to tears. Even "A Walk to Remember" fits the pattern, in a strange way. "The Longest Ride" is no exception to the rule; I liked Luke and Sophia and very much wanted a happy ending for them, but it was Ira's chapters that I found most memorable and moving. If more of the novel had focused on Ira and Ruth, this would have been a five-star read, easily. Readers well-versed in inspirational copypasta may well guess rather early on what's going to happen in the end, as Sparks has borrowed a major plot element from a certain b...
Bobby sanfordStac
I could not put this book down for any length of time. I did see the movie and was aware of the differences in both. I was amazed that I thoroughly enjoyed both versions. It was the story of two love stories that were deeply fascinating. I am define fly recommending this book to my four daughters and friends. There was not any part of the novel and movie that I disliked. They are both great in reading and viewing.
Cat LadyBobby san
As with all Nicholas's Sparks books this one will draw you into the story and make you feel like you're part of the characters. You'll cheer, cry and laugh with them., while hanging onto every word till the very end. This story is well written. Heartbreaking. Beautiful. And timeless. I held on to every word Ira said, the letters to Ruth and the last few hours in the car. Their story both broke my heart and uplifted it thru tears, laughter and moments of quiet appreciation for such beautifully written words. The movie was wonderful, but the book... Is where the real story begins and ends. I have read and loved many of Nicholas Sparks books, among other favorite writers but this one, is my most cherished and favorite. I hope one day I too will find a love so timeless, beautiful and touching as that of Ira and Ruth.
