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O

riental serves as the setting for best-selling author Nicholas Sparks’ latest novel which came out in October. “The Best of Me” is the 17th book for the New Bern-based author.

New book in town, Nicholas Sparks’ “The Best of Me” as seen here on Oriental’s Town Dock. The book is set in Oriental and mentions the coffeehouse in the background, The Bean, by name, but otherwise doesn’t draw heavily from details of village living. (Village dogs are not mentioned, though one decided he had to be in this photo shoot.)

As in many Sparks’ books, the book is centered around two people, a couple — she’s Amanda, he’s Dawson – who had been boyfriend and girlfriend when they lived in Oriental and attended Pamlico High in the mid-1980’s. As fate, and the plot, would have it, they went their separate ways. They both left town and had no contact for a quarter century. Then, in the present day, when they are in their early 40’s, they meet again, back in Oriental.

Since Oriental doesn’t get mentioned in many books, TownDock.net bought a copy of “The Best of Me” — $27.75 with tax — the day it came out. This purchase was made at the New Bern Mall, steps away from where hundreds of Sparks fans — women mainly — were lined up to meet Sparks and get a moment, a book signing and a photo with the author. The line stretched hundreds of feet down the mall.

A Sparks book can draw a crowd.

Nicholas Sparks signed thousands of books at New Bern Mall.

We did not wait in line, as our interest was more in looking up the Oriental references in “The Best of Me” to see how they stacked up with actual life here in the village.

Mr. Sparks, of course, can take writer’s license and adapt the town and its setting to fit in to his tale. Mainly, he uses that license to paint in broad strokes. He tells instead of shows; he tells us that Oriental is quaint, he tells us that it is quirky. But he doesn’t give details to show how it is so.

In sum, Oriental is merely the lightly-painted stage-set for his protagonists. The descriptions might be those of a rural town anywhere, even someplace inland.

This is not to say there aren’t some descriptions – just that they are not finely drawn.

We won’t spoil the ending — or the middle — or even much of the beginning. Rather, we present here a guide to “The Oriental in ‘The Best of Me.’” It’s for residents and regular visitors who grasp Oriental’s sense of place here on the river.

It’s also for those, who’ve never been here, who may visit in hopes of sampling the 20 flavors of Bean coffee while capturing the rapt attention of the young baristas…

The Oriental in “The Best of Me”

W

e start eight pages in as one of the main characters prepares to visit Oriental after being away for a quarter century.

Page 8: The Oriental he knew was nothing like the cheery image advertised by the area Visitors’ Bureau. For most people who spent an afternoon there, Oriental came across as a quirky little town, popular with artists and poets and retirees who wanted nothing more than to spend their twilight years sailing on the Neuse River.

There’s the first Q word, which appears often in real magazine articles about Oriental. And here, a sentence later, comes the second Q word:

“It had the requisite quaint downtown, complete with antiques stores, art galleries, and coffee shops, and the place had more weekly festivals than seemed possible for a town of fewer than a thousand people.”

In reality, Oriental doesn’t have multiple antique stores. There is a consignment store that can count as one though. There are two art galleries. It is true that Oriental does seem to have a lot of events given the small population – circa 900 last census — within the town limits.

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Posted Monday November 7, 2011 by Melinda Penkava

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