Friday 5 August 2011

One Day one day?

So... everyone (including my bro) seems to be reading One Day by David Nicholls - but the 3-for-2 tables and newspaper musings don't give me the views I rely upon. I'm throwing this open to my ready-made decision-makers. One Day... thoughts? (I'm setting aside the fact that I totally had the idea for this sort of book years ago... except mine was going to cover eighty years... yeah, probably why that didn't get written.)

21 comments:

  1. I really, really liked it, but it was unexpected in many ways. I think you should give it a try!

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  2. I actually loved this! It wasn't a perfect book but I enjoyed it.

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  3. I started to read this book and I was enjoying it and then I got bored, and gave up. I decided it was probably more enjoyable for readers of the same age as the characters. This suggests to me that it wasn't a classic,because if the book is enthralling enough, age of character and reader is irrelevant.

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  4. Yes, I know they change age - but I am older than any of the ages they achieve! Perhaps, it's nothing to do with age, but it's that the author did not persuade me to care about the two characters or what happened to them.

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  5. I absolutely loved 'One Day', and I'm eagerly awaiting the film. I'd definitely re-read the book too. I also liked 'Starter for Ten' very much.

    Two other novelists that I'd recommend (if you haven't already read them!) who seem to write in the same vein/genre as David Nicholls are Tim Lott and Nick Hornby.

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  6. I enjoyed this, it is a light read and a bit chick-lit in places but overall I couldnt put it down

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  7. I thought this was excellent - very funny, but often quite serious as well (I actually had a blog post floating around about how Nicholls explores humour in the book, and how it becomes a barrier between the two main characters, but my computer ate it). I wasn't a fan of his two earlier novels, however, which I thought veered towards the slapstick and so lacked depth - he's found a much better balance with 'One Day'.

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  8. I'm not sure. I wasn't a massive fan, but you might like it. The question you've got to ask is whether you like light, almost fluffy reads. It is basically chick-lit.

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  9. I really enjoyed it. Made me a little weepy at the end.

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  10. I loved it. As some of the others have said, it is pretty light and fluffy, but I thought it held onto reality a lot better than most fluff-lit. I was also really glad to have tried something with this particular structure as it's quite unusual and in a way better than most "episodic" novels because you can't have something brilliant happen every 15th of July, so some of the entries are quite prosaic.

    Also when you read it you will see that Emma is supposed to be from a Yorkshire working/lower-middle class background and that is clearly not Anne Hathaway and then you can join me in my outrage at the casting decision.

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  11. I enjoyed it. The main characters are well drawn, and there's something very endearing about the way that although they are both a bit annoying separately, they're likeable as a couple. I'm not sure it's going to go down in time forever as a classic, but it's worth reading and is quite well-executed. But why not save it until you're in the mood for something friendly?

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  12. Also loved it. I think the way you feel about it depends a lot on how much you identify with the main characters and what happens to them. Your age might also play a big role.

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  13. Watch the 1978 movie "Same Time, Next Year" with Alan Alda and Ellen Burstyn. Same concept, by playwright Bernard Slade. There's nothing new under the sun.

    http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0078199/plotsummary

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  14. haven't read it. haven't even seen it. what's the scoop?

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  15. That reminded me of the play "Same Time Next Year" (which I see someone else has already brought up) - and when I googled to get the correct title for that found mention of a short story by Neal Shusterman about time travel by the same name.

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  16. Just like to add that I, (a lady of mature years), and my 25 year old son both loved 'One Day', so as far as I'm concerned it crossed the generations!

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  17. I read it a while ago before it became popular and enjoyed it as a light read. It then went into the charity shop bag though.

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  18. I liked it a lot, despite finding the principal male character infuriating. It is a far cry from the sort of thing in your fifty books list, but at least worth a try. I would suggest you borrow your brother's copy when he has finished it, that way if you don't like it you will not have wasted any money. I know we should hand over the cash to support authors, but I doubt Mr Nicholls is struggling after selling the film rights. If he is, then he should probably be thinking about changing his agent!

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  19. One Day book will made into movie in Next August 19 , 2011 (US) 17 in Iceland. like this... ♥ ♥ ♥

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