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Six years ago, Nan Lewis lost everything because of a drunk driver on River Road.  Her daughter's death shook her world, paralyzing her with grief and anger.  Unable to pen another word, Nan's career as a novelist stalled.  Her marriage crumbled as she curled in on herself, becoming a virtual hermit.  With her social life revolving mainly around her cat, the professor drinks too much while spending long, lonely hours brooding inside her rotting farmhouse.  The only thing that really matters to her is her job teaching creative writing at a college in upstate New York.  And now she's been denied tenure.  Things can't get much worse.

Then, they do.

While driving home from a faculty Christmas party on snow-packed River Road, Nan hits a deer.  Although her car is dented, she sees no sign of the dead animal.  Shaken, she just manages to fight her way through the heavy snow and park her mangled car at the bottom of her driveway.  She receives another shock when a policeman shows up on her doorstep the next morning informing her that one of her students—Leia Dawson—was killed the night before in a hit-and-run on River Road.  Because of Nan's damaged car, she's just become a suspect.  Despite her horrified protests, the overwrought professor can't be entirely sure of her own innocence.  She had been both upset and "slightly" intoxicated when she got behind the wheel.  Nan hit something with her car—was it a deer or something much, much more disturbing?  

As she becomes even more of a pariah in her small community, Nan searches her cloudy memories for the truth of what really happened that night on River Road.  When eerie tokens recalling her daughter's accident start showing up on her doorstep, Nan becomes even more unhinged.  What really happened to Leia Dawson?  Nan's (almost) convinced she had nothing to do with the young woman's death.  But if she didn't, who did?  As the stakes grow ever more perilous, the professor must figure out the truth.  Before it's too late.

With a premise like the one at the heart of River Road by Carol Goodman, how could I resist?  The novel opens with a bang and keeps up the intensity all the way through to its satisfying end.  Nan is a sympathetic character with realistic flaws that make her both relatable and root-worthy.  Myriad twists keep her story interesting.  Although I saw the killer coming from about halfway through the novel, I literally could not stop reading until I knew for sure what had happened to Leia.  River Road is that compelling.  Even though I've read a few more of Goodman's books since this one, River Road remains my favorite.  

(Readalikes:  Hm, I can't really think of anything.  Can you?)

Grade:

 

If this were a movie, it would be rated:

 

for language, violence, blood/gore, mild sexual content, and depictions of illegal drug use

To the FTC, with love:  Another library fine find

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Are you happy?  What makes you that way?  What keeps you that way?  According to Hank Smith, a popular writer and speaker, humans are hard-wired for happiness.  In the introduction to his new book, Be Happy, he writes: "The desire to be happy is ingrained in you.  The Lord put it there.  You might think of it as His fingerprint on your brain" (2).  If that is so (and it is—it's in the scriptures), then why are so many people so unhappy?  What makes them that way?  What keeps them that way?

Smith proposes that, in most cases, we are what is making us unhappy.  By banishing behaviors that lead to unpleasant results, we can create more joyful lives for ourselves.  Smith is quick to note that cases of clinical depression are a different ballgame, but for those with garden-variety unhappiness, small lifestyle changes can have a big impact on one's general outlook.  Being happier is not about our circumstances, insists the author, but in how we deal with those circumstances.  Using examples from scripture as well as counsel from notable leaders, thinkers, scientists, etc. the author offers practical advice on paving a happier path.  Everything from meditating to identifying stimuli in order to better control our reactions to it to keeping a gratitude journal to eating better to laughing more to serving other people can help us be happier on a daily basis.

If you've heard Hank Smith speak, you are familiar with his positive, upbeat style.  This engaging voice infuses Be Happy, making it a quick, funny read that will keep you smiling.  The advice he gives is solid, though, and definitely worth putting into practice.  Even people who would describe themselves as naturally happy can find tips to make their existence even more joyful.  Overall, this small book is a gem.  It's an easy, helpful read that should bring light to anyone who's feeling down.  I enjoyed this fun pick-me-up and would recommend it to anyone who needs a little happy in their life.

(Readalikes:  Um, I can't think of anything.  You?)

Grade:

If this were a movie, it would be rated:

To the FTC, with love:  I received a finished copy of Be Happy from the generous folks at Covenant Communications.  Thank you!

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Two years ago, Petula de Wilde killed her little sister.  Intellectually, the 16-year-old knows Maxine's death wasn't her fault—not entirely—but she can't quite convince her aching heart.  Nothing's been the same since Max died.  Not Petula's parents, who can barely stand each other.  Not her friendship with Rachel; the two no longer speak.  Not Petula's fragile psyche, which can't stop seeing death in every pothole, germ, and hamburger patty.  Petula used to be normal.  Now, she's a freak with such limited social skills that she's stuck doing preschool projects in art therapy class with the all other weirdos at her high school.

Then, Petula meets the Bionic Man.  Jacob Cohen, a 17-year-old amputee, has just moved to Vancouver from Toronto.  For reasons the budding filmmaker refuses to divulge, he has also been placed in "crafting for crazies."  For reasons just as mysterious, Jacob seems to find Petula oozing with friend potential.  She can't understand why a nice, normal guy like him would think her appealing, but he's slowly pushing through the defenses she throws up against everyone else.  Before she knows it, Petula and Jacob have become closer than she could have ever imagined.  Petula's told him all her deep, dark secrets, so why is Jacob so reticent with his?  What is he hiding?  When the truth finally comes to light, everything will change.  Including a tenuous relationship between two very broken teenagers ...

Yesterday when I was reading Optimists Die First, a YA tragicomedy by Susin Nielsen, my 15-year-old daughter asked what the book was about.  Without really thinking, I replied, "A quirky girl meets a quirky boy and they fall in quirky love."  And you know what?  That's a pretty apt description, if I do say so myself.  Petula, a craft and cat fiend with myriad neuroses, defines quirky.  Her oddities keep her interesting, while her voice—which is strong and real—makes her relatable.  She's a sympathetic character, one readers want to see succeed.  Gentle Jacob appeals in much the same way.  In fact, this could be said of all Nielsen's story people.  They're a likable lot.  Which makes Optimists Die First fun to read.  It's a sad book, yes, but it's more hopeful than not.  Although there were parts I wasn't so keen on (hello, bizarrely lax parenting!), overall, I enjoyed this novel about friendship, forgiveness, and finding hope in even the darkest of crafting disasters.

(Readalikes:  Hm, I can't think of anything.  Can you?)

Grade:

    

If this were a movie, it would be rated:

for language (no F-bombs), sexual content, and references to drugs and underage drinking (references are non-graphic and used mostly in a cautionary way)

To the FTC, with love:  I received an ARC of Optimists Die First from the generous folks at Random House Children's Books.  Thank you!