My Favorite Books to Give: Modern Classics

 Some might argue that this title is just a classic. Period. I wouldn’t argue back.

Though he is known as one of the founding fathers of magical realism, Gabriel Garcia Marquez wrote one of my favorite romance novels of all time. Put away thoughts of Harlequin books with torn-shirted men on the cover and think of real, true, passionate, timeless love.

And there you have Love in the Time of Cholera. If you know someone who reads too much Danielle Steele or believes Nicholas Spark to be the ultimate expert on love, I strongly suggest giving her (or him, I suppose) this book.

Here is the Amazon description, which is pretty spot on:

In their youth, Florentino Ariza and Fermina Daza fall passionately in love. When Fermina eventually chooses to marry a wealthy, well-born doctor, Florentino is devastated, but he is a romantic. As he rises in his business career he whiles away the years in 622 affairs--yet he reserves his heart for Fermina. Her husband dies at last, and Florentino purposefully attends the funeral. Fifty years, nine months, and four days after he first declared his love for Fermina, he will do so again.

Seriously… it’s a bit slow to get into, but it will make women everywhere swoon in a far more genuine way than Ryan Gosling rowing a boat in a lake of swans (for real, Nicholas Sparks, for real?).