Many of Nicholas Sparks’ bestselling books have been turned into blockbuster films, but one holds a special place in his heart.
Speaking exclusively with PEOPLE about his adaptations through the years, the North Carolina-based author, 58, notes that A Walk to Remember has stood out from the rest when it comes to fan favorites.
“The one I’ve seen the most is A Walk to Remember,” he says of the 2002 film starring Mandy Moore and Shane West. “When I had my kids growing up, they hadn’t yet read a novel [of mine], and they’d say, ‘Oh, can we see what you do?’ I’d say, ‘I’ve got the movie for you.’ And I had five kids so I had to sit through multiple viewings of that because I would show that to them again. That movie was great. It just works.”
However, he adds that The Notebook is another “iconic” adaptation, noting it will likely “stand the test of time.”
Reflecting on A Walk to Remember, Sparks notes that one of his favorite memories from filming was simply working with Moore and West on set.
“They were so excited,” he said of the young stars. “Mandy was such a nice young lady. At the time, my son was 10 years old, and when he saw Mandy, he thought she was the most beautiful girl in the whole world. She was like 17.”
In fact, his son ended up having a small role in the film. “He actually ended up in the final cut of the movie in the little church scene early on in the film,” he says. “He’s one who looks absolutely miserable, and I’m like, ‘You did perfect for singing in church, son. That is exactly how kids look.’ ”
He adds that he’s still in contact with West and Moore to this day. “We’re still good friends,” he continues. “It’s been great to see where their careers have gone and see what they’ve done. It’s a movie that works on levels that are difficult to understand.”
Over the years, the book’s ending and how it was adapted in the film, has been a major point of discussion amongst fans. While the film gives Jamie a definitive ending, the book leaves things more open to interpretation.
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For Sparks, there was an intention behind that: to give readers hope. Though the book was inspired by his sister’s own death from a brain tumor, he notes he grew quite attached to Jamie during the writing process.
“It was interesting, throughout the writing of the novel, I was sure that she was going to pass away, and then when I get to the pages where I have to write it, I’m like, ‘Oh, she’s so sweet.’ I just didn’t have the heart to write it,” he explains. “So I left it more vague and mysterious that it could have gone both ways.”
Speaking exclusively with PEOPLE about his latest novel Counting Miracles, Sparks notes that one of the best parts of his career has been reaching new audiences through different mediums, whether movie adaptations or Broadway productions.
“I’m very happy about it, because if I can see the story, I happen to think the story is good, and I want as many people as possible to be familiar with the story,” he explains. “A lot of people watch film or they’ll tune into cable. They’ll see something I’ve done on television, or they see a show on Broadway, and there they get to experience my story in a different medium. But it’s still the story that I felt was worth telling in the first place.”
“However people discover them, my hope then, after that, is that they enjoy them, that they feel it was worth their time to read, and ideally — in a perfect world — you also hope that they enjoy it so much, they tell someone else about it,” Sparks continues. “That’s what I hope for.”
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