Cecelia Ahern is and will always be my most favorite writer. Before I get to the book and of course how good it is, I would like to express my unconditional love for Cecelia. The very first book I read by her was ‘If You Could See Me Now’ and yes I realized I am a hardcore love story reader. Cecelia Ahern made me realize my kind of stories that I can relate to and it’s something that fascinates me more than any other genre.
So why is Cecelia Ahern’s books different from others? See there are many romance novel writers and many of them are great at it. In fact fabulous. However, there is something about Cecelia that is so unique and amazing. It’s the fact that she can write so effortlessly a story, which one might think, is utterly impossible in a fascinating realistic way. This book is an example of that.
‘Thanks For The Memories’, published in 2008, is according to me one of Cecelia’s best works. A very beautiful love story. It is about a woman named Joyce who undergoes a blood transfusion as she encounters an accident. After she comes out of the physical trauma she finds herself dealing with the mental trauma of her divorce and losing her baby. What’s queer is that she tends to remember flashes of incidents that has never occurred in her life.
On the other hand, another pivotal character of the story is Justin who is also divorced. The only thing that keeps him going is giving lectures to students on art. So what is the connection between him and Joyce? The only thing that connects them is that the blood that Joyce received is from Justin apart from the fact that both have their names starting with a ‘J’( I just connected that but it has nothing to do really). However, turns out there is more than just blood transfusion from Justin to Joyce.
The book beautifully narrates the difficult parts that surface in a relationship and how the characters deal with it.
You might wonder that the story is a little clichéd but why is it unique? It is unique because of the way Cecelia Ahern writes it. The little details to the incidents every time Joyce has a déjà vu moment, both the father daughter equations that are bitter sweet just like in every one of our lives and the unexplainable attraction they have for each other. That is purely what makes this unrealistic story a must read. It is simple yet BEAUTIFUL, plays with your heartstrings and effortlessly makes you believe the unbelievable things.
Know that if you have read ‘If You Could See Me Now’ then you might feel “Thanks For The Memories” is not as good as that. ‘If You Could See Me Now’ is an amazing book, ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS I HAVE READ. But “Thanks For The Memories” is good in its own way. And what’s the harm in a little dose of love in our mundane lives.
Ending this on the note that I LOVE CECELIA AHERN AND I WOULD LIKE TO THANK HER FOR KEEPING IMAGINATION ALIVE IN ME. No matter what your age is know that a little unrealistic imagination never hurt anybody.