Title: One Day
Author: David Nicholls
Published by: Hodder
Published on: February 4, 2010
Pages: 437
You can live your whole life not realizing that what you're looking for is right in front of you.
It's summer and I just want to talk about stories that tug at your heart string, sometimes in the most inconvenient spaces. Last week was Perks, this week is One Day.
The name David Nicholls might ring a bell to some of you, as he wrote Starter for Ten. Yanno, that book that got adapted into a movie starring James McAvoy, Benedict Cumberbatch, Mark Gatiss, Charles Dance,... heck, I can go on a tangent about the string of Brits famous faces in that film. Still doesn't ring a bell? Well, go stream the movie mate, you missed babyfaced Sherlock and Mycroft, lol.
Aanyway, One Day tells the story of Emma and Dexter. Em and Dex. Dex and Em. They were college students about to graduate from the University of Edinburgh (oh hi, sister college!). They met at some sort of party and actually were about to hook up, but the talk they had got so intense that it became more interesting than having sex. Emma was some sort of activist; she wanted to change the world. Dexter was a player, enjoying life. Interestingly, a friendship begun that night and we meet them at the same point in life, i.e. the same day, for 20 years.
In what was arguably the realest description of life after college, or rather, Having Your Idealistic Dreams Shattered by the Cruel, Cruel World, both went on different paths. Emma wrote to realise her dreams of improving the world, yet was not successful. Dexter, on the other hand, spent his young adult life partying and hooking up with women, while his career took off. They still maintained contact. Each clearly wanted to start a relationship with the other, but the timing never seemed right. Either an affair with a married man, or a girlfriend turned fiancée turned wife. Yanno, just lyfe.
But even the darkest night will end and the sun must rise, no?
After years, Emma finally got her big break and realised her worth. She decided to move overseas and met someone she really liked. Interestingly, while Emma's life started to go up, Dexter's slowly crumble. It was at this moment he realised he didn't want to lose Emma and gathered up the courage to tell her how he felt.
It's your typical will-they-won't-they romance, that makes you want to pull your hair in frustration but simply can't let go. Will Em and Dex, Dex and Em come true? Or will the story stay true to its raw depiction of real life?
EGGLYSIS
I might not have been particularly familiar with David Nicholls work prior to this book, but Starter for Ten is one of my ultimate favourite movies because of its dry humour and its realness. Every character is fleshed out so well, even the main character made me cringe in some places, and the story feels so real. This makes its appearance in One Day, and I have got to say that the story was mostly engaging.
Mostly.
Let me tell you my ultimate pet peeve in any romance: a woman who wastes her time pining for a no good, albeit very good looking, arsehole, then after some time decided she's worth so much more than that, only to fall back into his embrace the moment he finally realises he can't live without her. And I was sorely disappointed when David Nicholls went exactly that way because, honey, it is absolutely unrealistic.
Sigh, and I thought this book was going to be different.
Don't get me wrong, Em and Dex have so much chemistry, it hurts. But the will-they-won't-they trope stretches out too far and at some point Dex becomes such an arsehole, it was painful the more I read. Then, when Em finally came to her senses and told him off, I was literally whooping for her. Gurl had the courage to decide what was best for her, and pining for some guy was not it, no matter the chemistry. I was allll for it!
But alright, I guess Nicholls wanted to write a good romance between two best friends. I do love BFF-turns-to-lovers trope. Plus, the chemistry is tooo good, who am I to refuse?
Then the ending happened and I just lost it.
WHY HAVE ME GO THROUGH ALL THAT EMOTIONAL ROLLER COASTER TO JUST SIMPLY THROW IT OUT THE WINDOW?? I don't give a damn how some people said it was meant to be a tragedy. I felt absolutely cheated, emotionally manipulated, I was fucking enraged. This book did nothing for me but make me distrust David Nicholls and anything he writes. It's like Nicholls wanted to pull an Atonement, but spectacularly failing. Where Atonement managed to make us care for the characters and their journey, One Day made me wonder why Em and Dex even liked each other in the first place. When the rug is pulled, I did cry like I did with Atonement... only with rage.
Overall, One Day...
