[simpleazon-link asin=”006228553X” locale=”us”]The Good Luck of Right Now[/simpleazon-link]
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
If you like quirky characters, this may be the book for you. The main character, Bartholomew, writes to Richard Gere. Another character fears alien abduction and attends grief counseling because his cat died. There’s also a bi-polar priest. Though the characters are flawed, or maybe because they are, they have fascinating insights on the world. They are carefully drawn, sympathetic and sometimes amusing. The story is hopeful and the narrator, Bartholomew, is a sheltered character who knows little of how to navigate in the world. However, Bartholomew, never stops trying. His growth and his willingness to “pretend” to be stronger than he is make him and his friends characters worth rooting for. This book isn’t for everyone as one of the characters has a bad habit of cursing incessantly. However, I highly recommend this book for people who like character-driven novels.

Quotes:

“I feel as though I am a fist opening, a flower blooming, a match ignited, a beautiful mane of hair loosened from a bun-that so many things previously impossible are now possible.”

“Her voice was…reluctant and damaged and beautiful and maybe like a bird with a broken wing singing unfettered all alone in the wilderness when she thinks no one is listening, if that makes any sense, which it probably doesn’t.”

“The universe hiccups, and we poor fools try to figure out why.”