the ask@AAR: What stories make you ugly cry?

As I’ve mentioned before, I’ve spent the last year listening to the Harry Potter books. I am currently at the end of book six, Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, and have just sobbed my way through the death of a beloved character.

If you haven't read the books, don't read this!
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Dumbledore dies.
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I also sobbed my way through the finale of the last season of Unforgotten. That too had a death that gutted me.

As I've grown older, I've become less interested in stories that truly break my heart. When I was younger, I loved weeping my way through the end of Call of the Wild, Beth's death in Little Women, the piercing horror of Sophie's Choice. But, since I had kids, I've found devastating tragedy in books harder to parse. (I am still furious about Prim's death. There was NO reason for that!)

However, there is still a part of me that loves a good ugly cry. Sometimes I even rewatch the season five finale of Buffy and reread the ending of The Amber Spyglass just to have a reason to bawl.

So, what are the stories that, in the best way, have made you ugly cry? And are any of them romances?

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