Stolen from ML: What's the Saddest Book you've read?

[christy082]

For me, it's The Fault in Our Stars.  I ugly cried and had swollen eyes the morning after I finished it.  I still loved it though.

[IIOY]

I am certain I've read books sadder than this, but the only one I can remember that triggered a reaction was Watership Down. I actually have gone back and re-read the final couple of pages or so many times over the years. It no longer brings me to tears to do so, but for many years it did, since I knew the entire story that lead up to it.

Oh, I vaguely remember something in Tiger Eyes bringing me to tears when I was a kid, but I don't recall what.

Oooo, another I just remembered - Sarah's Key. Heart-wrenching.

My universe of tear-jerkers is probably pretty small since I tend to avoid books that involve sadness or tragedy.

[charlatti]

The Kennedy Detail and Mrs. Kennedy and Me, both about the Secret Service when Kennedy was assassinated, were surprisingly heart-wrenching. I'm fascinated with the Secret Service but not so much the Kennedys, so I didn't expect it to be that emotional. The Light Between Oceans was mentioned in the other thread, I think, and it definitely makes my list, as does Tell the Wolves I'm Home.

[dorothyinAus]

I cried for days after I read Charlotte's Web as a child. As an adult, Dewey: The Small-Town Library Cat Who Touched the World was the biggest tar-jerker. I made the mistake of attempting to finish it at lunch at work one day and half the cafeteria ended up staring at me when I could not stop crying.

A Mango-Shaped Space was pretty sad too.

Other books have made me tear-up and some outright bawl, but I cannot remember any offhand.

[booknerd]

Winter Garden by Kristin Hannah. Most Jodi Picoult books, Sing You Home, My Sister's Keeper, and Handle with Care for sure. And Dear John by Nicholas Sparks.

Winter Garden was the saddest by far though. I really want to read The Fault in Our Stars.

[christy082]

Yes, Winter Garden made me cry too.  TFiOS was worse for me, but both were great books.  

[ally]

Two books I have "ugly cried" while reading are The Book Thief and Sarah's Key.  Both were excellent books, I was just glad I was home alone reading both - no witnesses!

[5kcandlesinthewind]

I sobbed buckets at Tell the Wolves I'm Home. I ugly cried (on the bus, no less) at the end of If I Stay. But I think A Thousand Splendid Suns broke me worst of all. I cannot remember crying so hard at a book, and I can't even talk about that book without getting upset all over again.  The Kite Runner was bad, but this was about a thousand times worse.

[christy082]

Good to know, I have both The Book Thief and A Thousand Splendid Suns.  Now I know to read them at home.  

[duckduck]

Where the Red Fern Grows.

[Myrrhine]

The book thief, and when I was younger, Bridge to Terabithia. I was so mad at that book.

[apelila]

Another vote for Bridge to Terabithia. I read it as a kid and remember bawling my eyes out. I just bought a copy from the used book store a few weeks ago!

[aurora]

Apr 14, 2013 13:39:36 GMT -5 duckduck said:

Where the Red Fern Grows.

This is what I was going to say, too.  I have cried so hard every time I have read it, even when I picked it up again as an adult to see if my impression had changed.

I also cried for The Book Thief and A Thousand Splendid Suns.  I cry fairly often while reading.

[frlcb]

I just finished Me Before You and may have shed a tear, or two, or more.

[rizza]

The Art of Racing in the Rain and A Thousand Splendid Suns
When I was younger- where the red fern grows.

[justemily]

Ditto The Art of Racing in the Rain - total tearjerker. Add Marley & Me to that list, too!

[BookLover]

Marley & Me and Dewey: The Small Town Library Cat. I knew the ending was heading that way, but it's always sad because they are animals.

[BlackCanary]

Hands down, Where the Fern Grows. I just stop reading right before the last chapter.