Instruct: Classify a given review as either positive or negative.
Query: Worst book of 98

I suffered through 99 pages of this book before finally tossing it down. This was definitely the worst book I've read all year. Sparks first novel, The Notebook, was quaint, soppy, but a good beach read. This novel contains some of the worst dialogue I've read, it is simplistic and unbelievable. The writer misses the boat on creating likeable characters you even remotely care about. You are never able to create vivid images from his descriptions, and it drags on and on and on.... Sparks benefited from Oprah's recommendation of The Notebook, but he is unable to follow-up with a novel that even comes close. I've happily picked up Carol Shield's Larry's Pary and after 5 pages, I'm captivated!