Gentle Reads Annotation: Safe Haven by Nicholas Sparks

Author:  Nicholas Sparks

Title:  Safe Haven

Genre:  Gentle Reads

Publication Date:  September 14, 2010

Number of Pages:  340

Geographical Setting:  Southport, NC; Boston, MA; Philadelphia, PA; Various Bus Stations

Time period:  Contemporary (mid-2000s)

Series:  Standalone Novel

Plot Summary:  Katie, a beautiful, haunted, mysterious woman arrives in Southport, NC.  She only leaves her house (a former slave cabin on a plantation that has been converted into a small – and somewhat ramshackle – home) to work at a local restaurant serving tables and to walk to the grocery store to buy what little food she can afford.  After two months, a woman named Jo moves into the cabin next door, and Jo’s outgoing personality eventually wins Katie over.  With Jo’s encouragement, she warms to the idea of getting to know her friendly grocery store owner, Alex, a single widower and former military detective with two children.  As Katie’s relationships with Jo and Alex blossom, questions arise.  Why did she come to Southport?  Who haunts her from her past?  And what will happen when her previous life elsewhere and her current life in Southport collide?

Subject Headings:  Young women, Secrecy, Man-woman relationships, Families, Southport (N.C.), Love stories (Evergreen Indiana)

Appeal:

Tone/Mood  Despite several dark moments in Safe Haven dealing with Katie’s past, including topics such as mental illness and domestic violence (pushing the boundaries of the “gentle reads” genre), Katie’s life in Southport – and especially her blossoming relationship with Alex and his children, is happy, light, and wholesome.

Style/Language  Apart from a single “bitch,” this book contains no profanity.  There is no explicit or extramarital sex – though there is coerced sexual activity in a flashback scene between Katie and her ex-husband, and a single, eyebrow-raising line involving a nipple.  Katie’s current life and romance is chaste and innocently romantic.

Characterization  Katie, in her current situation, and once she comes out of her shell, is funny, friendly, and hardworking.  Apart from her relationship with Alex, her greatest joy comes from taking care of her home and living frugally.  Alex is a caring and involved single father and business-owner who somehow finds time to run his convenience store, as well as taking his two children out every afternoon for family activities.  All the residents of Southport with roles in this book are friendly and helpful (though perhaps a bit gossip-y).  This draws a sharp contrast to Katie’s previous life, however, which was dark, dangerous, and lonely, trapped with her abusive, alcoholic, and mentally ill husband.  The reader cheers for her heroism and happiness.

Storyline  God and religion play an important role in Safe Haven.  Katie’s ex uses religion in an unsettling and deranged way to justify his actions.  Katie and Alex discuss praying, God, and angels in a more traditionally positive way.  The story focuses on Katie’s personal growth, Alex’s relationship with his children and cherishing his deceased wife, and Katie and Alex’s blossoming relationship.  Scenes involving Katie’s estranged husband highlight her healthy and happy situation in Southport.

Frame/Setting  The bulk of this story takes place in Southport, North Carolina.  This is a small, quaint town which still embraces traditions such as annual town carnivals, spending time with one’s family, and frequenting the locally run, small grocery.  Residents remark that in Southport, nothing ever changes.  Flashback scenes take place in Boston and Philadelphia.  Much of the story takes place in Katie’s cabin, which she works to paint, repair, and decorate.  Her cooking and hosting skills are highlighted in a few scenes.

Pacing  Time in Southport passes slowly, and apart from a suspenseful interlude three-quarters into the book, one has little if any idea of how much time has passed.  The only changes are Katie’s gradual opening of herself to love and friendship.

Three Terms That Describe This Book:  Romance, Family, Growth

Readers Might Also Enjoy:

Fiction:

• Trouble the Water by Nicole A. Seitz (Friendships, Small Southern Town, Difficult Times)
• The Senator’s Wife by Sue Miller (Friendship, Secrets, Engaging Characters)
• Late Bloomer by Fern Michaels (Heartwarming, Secrets, Healing Power of Friendship and Love)

Nonfiction:

• Crazy Love by Leslie Morgan Steiner (Surviving Abuse, Finding True Love)
• Chicken Soup for the Soul:  Tough Times, Tough People by Jack Canfield, Mark Victor Hansen, and Amy Newmark (Overcoming Adversity, Heartwarming Stories)
• Diamond in the Rough:  A Memoir:  The True Story of a Domestic Violence Survivor by Kamika Graham (Christianity, Overcoming Adversity, Escaping Abusive Relationships)

References

Evergreen Indiana. (n.d.).  Safe haven / Nicholas Sparks.  Retrieved from: http://evergreen.lib.in.us/eg/opac/record/20365506?locg=1

NoveList Plus. (n.d.).  Read-alikes for Safe Haven.  Retrieved from:  http://web.b.ebscohost.com/novp/detail?sid=9283271d-abc2-4ecd-8b11-bc4288047f94%40sessionmgr103&UI=UI+356035&vid=5

NPR.  (2009).  A memoir of domestic violence and ‘crazy love’.  Retrieved from:  https://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=102661841