The Gift

The message is strong and clear, and it's one I think many of us need to hear. Time is truly a gift, and although we may feel the desire to work hard in our careers, make more money and succeed at what we do, at the end of the day it just doesn't matter. Great writing, great message, fantastic book! Thanks for this, Cecelia!

Lou Suffern is a typical workaholic. He ignores his wife and children. He promises them he'll be somewhere, then breaks the promise because of work. He feels that they should be grateful for the money he makes and the beautiful home they have. One morning he stops and gives a cup of coffee to a homeless man he passes each day. He tells him, Gabe, that there is probably a job in the mail room if he wants it, and gives him some of his extra clothes, so that he'll look decent. Gabe gets the job, and seems to have supernatural powers. He influences Lou by looking displeased when Lou puts his work first and breaks a promise to his family. He manages to get from the 14th, (really the 13th,) floor with his mail cart faster than Lou can with the elevator. He gives Lou a pill which lets him clone himself, giving him the capability to be two places at once. Lou discovers how much his family means to him, and how precious life is. All of Ahern's books have been different, and all very readable. I liked this book very much.

Another great book from the lady I consider to be the modern day Brothers Grimm, but wrapped in a much prettier package. Please keep your stories coming, Cecelia...we need the magic!

With at least a wink and a nod to beloved holiday classics such as The Bishop's Wife plus a tip of the hat to "The Twilight Zone," Cecelia Ahern gives us an interesting and unusual Christmas story. Lou Suffern's tale is told as a story within a story, when a policeman relays the main narrative to a kid arrested for throwing a turkey through his father's window, in order to impart a moral to the young poultry hurler. Lou is such an ambitious businessman that he is never completely present when he is physically with his wife, Ruth, and their young children, Bud and Lucy. Already quite successful, he is always planning and scheming how to get further ahead at his company, so that while sitting across from his wife at the table, he is mentally working business deals, trumping co-workers and impressing his boss. Lou is admittedly selfish and self-centered, so when he impulsively offers his coffee to a homeless man, Gabe, it is entirely out of character, even though the generous act might possibly be motivated by the fact that Gabe resembles Lou. When Lou then (again impulsively) finds a job for Gabe in the company's mailroom, it prompts those who know him to ask, "What's in it for Lou?" Although Lou has no way of knowing this at the beginning, the answer to that question forms the plot of THE GIFT. Meanwhile, Lou continues to alienate his family. He tells five-year-old Lucy that he will attend her Christmas play without any true intention of fulfilling his promise. On the night of the play, he goes to a bar with business associates instead, at the same time leaving long-suffering Ruth to host Lou's family for a meal. Ruth is furious with his present behavior and nurses bitter memories of his past, including a dalliance with their nanny --- just one affair among several. At work, Gabe is a curiosity to Lou. Gabe appears abruptly and impossibly here and there, sometimes saving Lou and at other times interfering with Lou's life and/or scaring him to death. Worst of all, Lou suspects that Gabe passes judgment on his way of life. When Lou is caught between two situations, knowing he must attend an important conference call that is scheduled for the same time as an equally urgent business meeting, Gabe engineers a surreal turn of events. Although this solution seemingly at least temporarily takes care of Lou's problems, it also offers him more than a few uncomfortable insights into his own personality. Gifts, in many forms, appear throughout the book. There's the job offer Lou gives Gabe. A handful of magic pills is another present, and a dreadful stomach flu is even viewed by one character as a gift. The biggest gift, though, is the one Lou ultimately receives. One of the many characteristics that is so intriguing about Cecelia Ahern's work is that a reader never knows what to expect. Here is an author who is not afraid to take risks. She also is an incredibly talented storyteller, mesmerizing readers with yet another page-turner. THE GIFT is an enjoy

In Dublin, business mogul Lou Suffern is a 24/7 workaholic who has no time for his family, who is tired of his failure to be there for them ever. On a brisk wintry morning in front of his office, Lou buys a hot cup of coffee for a homeless person and for no known reason offers Gabe a job in the mail room. Gabe in turn tells Lou his boss is having serendipitously lunch dates with his rival. Gabe tries to convince Lou how important family is, but the corporate officer is uninterested in his two children who are young and boring and his wife Ruth as he has a mistress. Lou realizes that Gabe can be in two places at one time and begs the man to help him do so. Gabe gives Lou a magical pill to clone himself. One Lou will close the real estate deal; the other goes home to his family as Gabe prays his "client" will learn the importance of loved ones. This is a fascinating version of A Christmas Carol as Lou thinks he is helping Gabe with an act of kindness, but Gabe is actually trying to help Lou place his priorities in order. The underlying message of this whimsical angelic story line is too simplified as Lou learns what matters between being "Ruthless" and being with Ruth and his other family members. Fans will enjoy that Lou learns what matters in a wonderful life is it is never too late because it's a wonderful world. Harriet Klausner