Love Story – Erich Segal

As the title suggests, it’s a very simple and sweet love story between two graduate students from opposite social backgrounds – he is a rich and ‘high-society’ guy while she is an Italian-American, who lost her mother early in childhood and father makes pastries for a living. She wants to pursue Music and wants to Travel (Paris!) while he is already on his way to become a lawyer and is a top Hockey player. However, he resents his father and family and his privileged background, in general. So, when his father doesn’t approve of of his marriage to Jennifer (that’s her name), Oliver (his name) walks out of family and marries Jennifer. They convince Jennifer’s father – though not easy, it’s not too difficult either. After marriage, they struggle to live comfortably – both of them working hard and living in a less-than-decent apartment.

They both soon complete their graduation and Oliver lands a job in one of the top legal firms. They move to New York and live happily (Alas! we can’t say happily ever after, after all there has to be a twist 😉 However, soon they come to know that Jennifer has some sort of leukemia and she is dying. How Oliver copes with that and Jennifer’s death conclude the story, which is narrated by Oliver himself.

First published in 1970, this novel has gone on to become a best seller – worldwide, not just in the United States of America.Very short novel that I could read in a single sitting – on a lazy Sunday afternoon. This book has been lying in my book shelf for quite some time but I somehow couldn’t get myself to read before this. I just picked it up casually and couldn’t put it down. Touching story of losing love and how it feels – especially for the man, whom it is not so easy to express his true feelings. and who always tries to suppress.. -k