Suzanne's Diary for Nicholas
James Patterson
(Guest Reviewer - Sandi von Pier)
2001 Little Brown & Company
ISBN: 0316969443
Katie Wilkinson has found the right man at last. Or so she thinks until the day he disappears. What went wrong? She receives a package in the mail -- from Matt. Inside there's a diary which he hopes will explain why he left.
Guest Reviewer Sandi von Pier writes:
“...Life is a game in which you are juggling 5 balls. The balls are called work, family, health, friends and integrity. And you're keeping all of them in the air. But one day you finally come to understand that work is a rubber ball. If you drop it, it will bounce back. The other four balls -- family, health, friends and integrity -- are made of glass. If you drop one of these, it will be irrevocably scuffed, nicked, perhaps even shattered. And once you truly understand the lesson of the five balls, you will have the beginnings of balance in your life.”
Katie Wilkinson is a busy Senior Editor at a New York publishing house. She has found her perfect man at last. He walked into her office with poems he'd written. He's a writer, a house painter, & an original thinker -- everything she's imagined she wanted in a partner. But one day, without explanation, he disappears from her life. Riding the rollercoaster of emotions over an ended relationship, Katie can't face work & stays home. A package is delivered to her door. Matt's handwriting is on the address & it contains a diary. Matt hopes it explains his reason for leaving.
Did you ever have questions about what your Mom & Dad were like before your were born & they were no longer around to ask? I know I did (& still do). This diary is a love letter written by a new mother, Suzanne, for her baby son, Nicholas.
In the diary she pours out her heart about how she & the boy's father met; about her hopes for marriage & family, & about the unparalleled joy that having a baby has brought into her life. As a mother I can relate to the joy of holding my child in my arms & watching him sleep. The first smile. The first word. I remember the anxiety of going back to work & the excitement of coming home to him at the end of the day.
As difficult as it is Katie reads this intimate diary. She realizes that Matt is the husband & father in this family. She reads on, sometimes crying, sometimes liking Suzanne & enthralled with Nicholas. Katie struggles to understand -- has Matt been cheating on his wife & child?
James Patterson has written a love story. About how good life can be if you find the right person. It's about treasuring every moment with the special one & about being thankful for what you have. It's about families, love, loss, new love & hope.
Patterson's insights & feelings are powerfully written. A real tearjerker which I couldn't put it down! It was great!
There's a shocker near the end which left the book a little anticlimatic but it had a happy ending & that pleased me. I couldn't wait to finish it but I didn't want it to end. You've got to read this!
Don't you forget the lesson of the five balls -- work, family, health, friends, integrity.
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