It's been a rough couple of weeks for us, BT. We've lost a close friend, and I've found myself feeling a little low even though we knew that this story would not have a happy ending. So to lift my mood, I've been trying to find books that don't bring me down even further. That's when I saw The Story of Arthur Truluv was available from the library. It gets great reviews and it's written by an author I've read before and enjoyed. Is it predictable? Yes. Is it sappy? Yes. Did it actually make me tear up a couple of times? Actually, it did. It is just a sweet story about an 85-year-old man who connects with an 18-year-old girl and how they find that they each fill a void in the other one's life.
I feel that Elizabeth Berg does a great job of describing Arthur and his next door neighbor, Lucille, as she addresses our feelings and thoughts as we age. Her description of Lucille and a long ago boyfriend was extremely touching. (My only complaint is that she chose to write that Arthur enjoyed listening to music by Dinah Shore! Really? I know plenty of 80-somethings, and none of them would be caught dead listening to her!) I love how Arthur visits the grave of his dead wife every day and has lunch with her. And he gets to know all the other people in the cemetery as they "speak" with him.
So if you're looking for a lift - if you need a sweet story that is a quick read, try it. No Pulitzer Prize here, but just a nice read. I enjoyed it. -June
1 comment:
Another stellar recommendation by blog creator june. It is definitely a well-written "feel good" book.
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