I needed some lighter reading... I was in Day 45 after I stop caring about what day of isolation it was. I was checking my sales data for Friends in Low Places. I was stressing over the book launch at a local brewery (which was a success by the way) and I also had a lot of the regular job thing I was also thinking about. I just needed to escape into someone else's story.
The Rosie Project by Graeme Simsion The Blurb: The art of love is never a science: Meet Don Tillman, a brilliant yet socially inept professor of genetics, who’s decided it’s time he found a wife. In the orderly, evidence-based manner with which Don approaches all things, he designs the Wife Project to find his perfect partner: a sixteen-page, scientifically valid survey to filter out the drinkers, the smokers, the late arrivers. Rosie Jarman possesses all these qualities. Don easily disqualifies her as a candidate for The Wife Project (even if she is “quite intelligent for a barmaid”). But Don is intrigued by Rosie’s own quest to identify her biological father. When an unlikely relationship develops as they collaborate on The Father Project, Don is forced to confront the spontaneous whirlwind that is Rosie―and the realization that, despite your best scientific efforts, you don’t find love, it finds you. Thoughts: I'm a sucker for quirky love stories and this is pretty much it. Of course, it's a little predictable. Of course, Don's going to meet Rosie. Of course, she's not going to be right for him. Of course, he's going to take an interest anyway. And of course, they're going to find a way at the end. But it's a fresh take and I liked how Don eventually sees his need for order and regiment is a crutch that is a protective shell rather than just a quirky character arc. I enjoyed my time in this book. The Wonder Boy of Whistle Stop by Fannie Flag The Blurb: Bud Threadgoode grew up in the bustling little railroad town of Whistle Stop with his mother, Ruth, church-going and proper, and his Aunt Idgie, the fun-loving hell-raiser. Together they ran the town’s popular Whistle Stop Cafe, known far and wide for its fun and famous fried green tomatoes. And as Bud often said of his childhood to his daughter Ruthie, “How lucky can you get?” But sadly, as the railroad yards shut down and Whistle Stop became a ghost town, nothing was left but boarded-up buildings and memories of a happier time. Then one day, Bud decides to take one last trip, just to see what has become of his beloved Whistle Stop. In so doing, he discovers new friends, as well as surprises about Idgie’s life, about Ninny Threadgoode and other beloved Fannie Flagg characters, and about the town itself. He also sets off a series of events, both touching and inspiring, which change his life and the lives of his daughter and many others. Could these events all be just coincidences? Or something else? And can you really go home again? Thoughts: You ever watch those nice easy TV shows about a small town. Think "Providence" or "Everwood" or "Ed" or "Hart of Dixie." It's not high drama, but it's entertaining. I thought of my Mom while reading this book. The way neighbors talk to each other. The way strangers talk to each other and are willing to lend a hand or look out for one another. These are the stories that are lost in suburbia when the interaction with your neighbor may be a wave as you drive away in your tank... er... SUV. I listened to this one, read by Fannie Flag herself and she does as good a job acting out all the voices as she does putting them on paper. Very enjoyable.
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