I almost didn’t read this for two reasons. The first is that it is due at the library tomorrow and reading on a deadline is too much like college. The second is because I have a pile of new books that came in the mail that I’m anxious to dig into. The reasons I did read it after all are because the fabulous and funny, Eileen Cook, recommended it, and because I’d requested it from the library and I think it’s safe to assume there was some expense in getting from another branch to mine, so as a responsible library patron, I should fulfill my part of the deal.
Boy am I glad I read it! This is a wonderful book. It’s got all the stuff that makes novels great: interesting characters, strong conflicts, moral dilemmas, poignancy, and a rousing heroine. But it has something else…some really beautiful writing. Writing that just makes you go, “Wow! I wish I’d thought to say it that way.” When Eileen wrote about it on her blog, she quoted the first line, but the one that made me stop and think was when Emily, the main character, was contemplating her own funeral and thought: I wonder if people would cry, and if there is anyone in the world who would hold the tears back for fear of never stopping.
Been there, right? I mean, haven’t you? But have you thought of it that way? The book is chock full of little bits and pieces like this that make this book just a little better than most good books. Oh, yeah, and to top it off, what a great title!
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