Glorie

I couldn't disagree more with the person who found "no story" here. There were so many stories in this book - a love story, a story of family/in-law dynamics, a story about mother/daughter and the tangled, twisted love and obligations that relationship entails. I found the character of Glorie to be a very real, recognizable individual who is struggling to maintain everything that has been important to her throughout her life. An added bonus for me was seeing a character from the Azores (my own heritage) in a novel. I felt that I knew this woman. A wonderful piece of writing!

I disagree with the reader who insists there is no story in this novel. There is more than one type of story possible for a novel, and this one's strong story is interior. It is an exquisite rendering of the inner-outer life split of an old woman attached in memory to her husband, and attached by the strings of family to her relatives, who threaten her life desires. This book is not for the reader who wants lot of exterior action narrative; it is for one who values the laying open of character and inner self.

I laughed. I cried. I wish all the elderly could be blessed with Glorie's sense of humor and grit. I loved this love story! How could such a young author have such compassionate insights? Wise beyond her years and funny beyond the norm. Wonderful!

I have to disagree with Alan Foster's comments about "Glorie". I felt that it was enchanting, and if not a laugh a page, at least a smile. So many insights into the thinking of an older person. Glorie reminds me of Sophia on "Golden Girls", only with a lighter touch. As for Jack speaking directly to her, I believe it's a given that it is done just in Glorie's thoughts, and he didn't show up on command. I had wondered how it would all end, and I think it did in the only way that would have been plausible. I highly recommend this book to one and all.