A Simple Story Well Told

I didn't know much of anything about this one when a friend of my handed it to me and said, "you need to read this." But I trust this person when she recommends a good book so without asking any questions I just sat down and read.

The true essence of reading is how - when reading is going well, one books leads to another and to another, until life becomes a paper trail of theme and meaning; and how, when it's going badly, when books don't stick or take, when your mood and the mood of the book are fighting like cats, you'd rather do anything but attempt the next paragraph, or reread the last one for the tenth time. It is one of those magical, unexplainable, glorious things about living. Something that non-readers never understand or appreciate. But it is something that Mary Ann Shaffer captured beautifully in her story.

I'm not giving anything else away. One of the things that endeared me to this book and its characters was the rare gift of no expectations. So I will just say that I would not recommend this to is anyone who only finds joy in reading voluminous tomes that offer 17 different layers of subconscious meaning, or anyone who insists that every work of fiction must absolutely routed in utter reality. However, if you have the ability to find joy and delight in the simple pleasures of a simple story well told, you too might fall in love with this one.