The Best Of Me, a love story by Nicholas Sparks, is set in a small town called Oriental in North Carolina. It features the main protagonists, Dawson Cole and Amanda Collier. In the spring of 1984, the two of them deeply fell in love. They were high school students back then, and their diverse backgrounds didn’t matter one bit. Their love for each other obliterated all barriers to their togetherness, or so it seemed. In a series of fateful events, they were radically torn apart and forced to go in different directions. Twenty-five years have now passed, and fate has once again intervened to bring the former lovers face to face. Dawson and Amanda are back to Oriental to attend the funeral of Tuck Hostetler, the person who once protected and nurtured their high school romance. Their lives bear no resemblance to what they once imagined, but neither of them can forget the passionate, powerful love they found with each other back in high school. Working in close confines to execute Tuck’s instructions, they discover that nothing from the past was really what it seemed. The painful memories and tough choices from their past continue to cast a shadow over their present lives. But one weekend spent in each other’s company gives them hope that perhaps love does have the power to heal the past. Dawson and Amanda just might turn out to be fortunate enough to regain what they once lost. The Best Of Me was published in October 2011 by Grand Central Publishing. Its film rights were acquired by Warner Bros. This particular edition is a 2011 reprint by Hachette India.