The Gift

Book: The Gift by Cecelia Ahern

"If you could wish for one gift this Christmas, what would it be?"

Synopsis: Everyday Lou Suffern battled with the clock. He always had two places to be at the same time. He always had two things to do at once. When asleep he dreamed. In between dreams, he ran through the events of the day while making plans for the next. When at home with his wife and family, his mind was always someplace else. On his way into work one early winter morning, Lou meets Gabe, a homeless man sitting outside the office building. Intrigued by him and on discovering that he could also be very useful to have around, Lou gets Gabe a job in the post room. But soon Lou begins to regret helping Gabe. His very presence unsettles Lou and how does Gabe appear to be in two places at the same time? As Christmas draws closer, Lou starts to understand the value of time. He sees what is truly important in life yet at the same time he learns the harshest lesson of all.

Book Notes: Cecelia Ahern has got to be one of my favourite chick-lit writers. Her stories are never really the typical boy meets girl, boy likes girl, boy courts girl, girl falls in love and they live happily ever after. Her stories are a step beyond the cliche, theres always some magical twist just waiting to happen.

Its a really quick read, something you can go through in one sitting. Its rather endearing how you get so engrossed in the characters that Ahern created. I found myself really detesting Lou for being such an ass, yet at the same time Ahern manages to instill sympathy, hope and surprisingly attachment to what seems like a very unlovable character. Although some parts of the book could have been deleted, like the turkey boy story and the police. I feel like it could have stood alone without that sub-plot that quite frankly left more questions than answers to the overall story. Nevertheless, its still a very enjoyable read that definitely warms your heart strings.

I know the holidays are over, but i read this book a little late (January to be exact). despite being set during Christmas, the theme of the story simply transcends any holiday notions. its one of those books that one has to read no matter what month of the year we're in. its one of those stories that makes us just stop drop and really ponder about our lives. It was written very simply, no big philosophical jargon, just a good story that really reminds you to slow down and value life.

Quotable Quotes:
"Truth and time always work alongside each other."

"Sometimes you have to give yourself to somebody in order to see who you are. Sometimes you have to let that person unravel things to get to the core."

"This is a story about people who find out who they are. About people who are unraveled and whose cores are revealed to all who count. And those who count are finally revealed to them. Just in time."

"Brown bread, brown rice, brown this, brown that. I used to remember a time when my life was in technicolour."

"Beggars can't be choosers, isn't that what they say? Though is that to say choosers can be beggars?"

"A person could be awakened when his eyes were already open. He didnt realize a person could be awakened when he considered himself to be calm, composed and collected, able to deal with life and all it had to throw at him."

"'Youre happy there' his father asked casually, still looking out the window, the party behind them visible in the reflection. 'No point in working that hard if youre not because at the end of the day, thats what its all about isnt it?'"