Taylor+G.

Sam's Letters to Jennifer  By James Patterson "An affecting love story awash in tragedy and hope.. Patterson again shows us how it is done." - Publisher Weekly

"A beautiful story... a box-of-tissues winner." - Bookreporter.com

"It will mesmerize you." - Bestsellers World.com

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I have a new mantra: 'Live every day from the crack of dawn until I can't keep my eyes open a second longer.' " - Brendan

And at that moment I understood something that had seemed impossible -- Brendan was going to live. - Jennifer

"And boy or girl, no matter what, our baby's name will //be Sam//." - Jennifer

__Passeages__ The first entry on my wikispace comes from the beginning of Brendan and Jennifer’s relationship. Every morning, Brendan went for an early swim in Lake Geneva. His enthusiasm was contagious, so Jennifer began swimming every morning with him. This became a tradition they carried on throughout the novel. Jennifer and Brendan made every day worth while, and jammed packed full of good times, for good reason. Brendan suffered from a terminal brain tumor, therefore wanted to live by the new mantra. He and Jennifer only want to live life to the fullest, together. Both of them knew their time together may be limited so they wanted to make the rest of their lives worth while.

The second entry on my wikispace comes from the end of the novel. Brendan had known for some time that he had a terminal brain tumor. He also knew that the only possible treatment for his tumor was an experimental surgery, a risky and new surgery. Even if Brendan decided to get the surgery, the chances of him surviving it were minimal. He became content with living his final days as fully as possible. But Jennifer came along. Brendan didn’t expect to fall in love, but he did. He and Jennifer talked little about what he should decide. Yet, Brendan knew Jennifer wanted him to get the surgery. He decides to have it done. Jennifer waits nervously for what seems to be ages. Finally, the doctor that operated on Brendan comes to get her, he’s alive. Brendan talks to Jennifer despite being week, and Jennifer realizes things are going to be okay.

The third entry on my wikispace also comes from the end of the novel. Sam is the nickname of Jennifer’s grandmother. Sam had always been Jennifer’s best friend. They got along, and they had the same personality. The novel begins with Sam falling and going into a coma. She had left Jennifer letters to read, a little at a time, about her life, her real life. Jennifer had gotten the opportunity to see into her grandmother’s past. She learned many new and surprising things about Samantha along the way, and also learned about herself. Sam ends up recovering from her coma, but passes away several months later. Jennifer is sad, but she thinks about the traits from Sam that will show in her baby. But despite whether her and Brendan’s baby has physical traits of Sam or not, the baby will always have Sam’s name.

__Pictures__ The picture of a bundle of letters is significant to the novel because Sam leaves Jennifer over a hundred letters to read. After discovering Sam is in the hospital, Jennifer rushes to her grandmother’s side. When Jennifer finally leaves the hospital for her grandmother’s home, she goes straight to her room. There she finds several bundles of letters, all of the letters are addressed to her. Jennifer begins reading them several at a time. She soon discovers that the letters are about the majority of her grandmother’s life. The letters hold many secrets about Sam’s life, most of the secrets Jennifer reads are a little deep and dark. Jennifer is shocked by most of what she reads, but isn’t mad or even really upset. After reading all of the letters, Jennifer better understands her grandmother and the life she lived, and also learns valuable life lessons.

The picture of the lake and dock is significant to the novel because a majority of the book takes place at Lake Geneva. The lake was a place that held many memories for Jennifer. Close to all of her summers had been spent at the lake with her grandparents. The entire time Sam was in the hospital, Jennifer stayed in the lake house. The lake is also where she met Brendan, the man she ended up falling in love with and having a child with. The lake is where she and Brendan spent almost all of their mornings, and sometimes their afternoons. While sitting on the dock, Jennifer learned of Brendan’s terminal illness, and there is also where they became extremely close to each other. The lake was one of the things in Jennifer’s life that made her happy.

__Video__ The video is significant to the novel because it incorporates a piece of Jennifer’s childhood. It talks about how Sam used to give her a mayonnaise jar to fill with items from the lake. This way Jennifer wouldn’t be so upset when she would have to leave at the end of the summer. The jar also symbolizes prioritizing. The most important things where put in first to ensure that they fit, and the other items filled the cracks in between the important things. The song along with the video also talks about being together, even if it is in another lifetime. Jennifer has lost so many people, but even though they aren’t physically with her they are in spirit. And someday, maybe they will be reunited, possibly in another lifetime.