A Piece of Normal

I love Sandi Shelton's insight and humor, which put me in mind of a less-flippant Nora Ephron. And I love how she fleshes out characters that other writers would leave as cartoons, until they start to seem as real as my neighbors and twice as interesting. Now, having devoured A PIECE OF NORMAL and her first novel, WHAT COMES AFTER CRAZY, I'm waiting impatiently for book #3. (My husband probably hopes it's a long wait, since Shelton's books keep me up so late with the reading light on.)

I loved Shelton's first book, What Comes After Crazy, but this one is even better, a great book about getting unstuck when life threatens to freeze-frame you. The characters are fully realized, and it was a joy to have them in my life while I read this book. I found myself slowing down toward the end because I didn't want the book to be over. The only thing I wish were different is the cover--the publishers have made it look rather too chick-litty, when it's so much more than that.

This book made me late for everything...I couldn't put it down to attend to my regular life! The author is a deft storyteller with a rich emotional clarity: She absolutely pinpoints every nuance of feeling in scene after scene. Plus she's extremely funny. Her lead character, Lily, is strong and smart (and clueless), and for some reason I love how she describes herself at one point: "slightly off-kilter, motor running full blast, but basically okay." I had a lot of fun with this book; I'd go anywhere the author takes me.

This is the kind of book that sucks you in so completely, that you are so sad when it ends, because you are not going to be able to visit with your "friends" anymore.

I loved Shelton's first book and was so excited to see she had written another one. I just went out and got it and am already loving this one even more. While the style of writing is similar to the last, this one seems to be on a slightly more serious note. The book, like the first, has lovable characters and a plot that has kept me from putting it down. The writing is excellent - really the best novels I have read in a long time. Highly recommended. Gotta go finish it!!!!