“Tending to Grace”

A teen overcomes a bad start. (Bergeron Image)

If it had not been for a writing class that I attended – the only male in a sea of patient ladies – I never would have purchased the book, Tending to Grace.  But within its crisply written pages, I unearthed the gem of a story:  

A small paperback only 175 pages long, easy to read, with some chapters so small, that they consist of no more than a large paragraph.

I read it in one sitting.  You could do the same, maybe in two, but you won’t want to put the book down.  Although its theme seems aimed at young people, it pierces the artificial boundaries of age.

The main character, Cornelia, is an avid, quality reader, well beyond that of her teen years.  She stutters badly, and suffers from the neglect of her mother Lenore, a person who has fallen off the ship of life.

Yet Cornelia still maintains hope, even after Lenore hits the road to Las Vegas with her boyfriend Joe, summarily plopping “Corns” with Agatha, Lenore’s crotchety sister who lives in a rundown New England farmhouse and unexpectedly finds herself burdened with this quiet, yet defiant teen.

At first, the old lady and the young girl don’t hit it off at all.  Then, later, there is the memory of Grace.

 

Read this tale, and then decide what the real theme is.  For me, it’s about two indomitable wills involuntarily pitted together who find themselves trudging on the back roads of life but, together, subsequently discover a new path with renewed vigor.

Also, it’s about the power of literacy – about reading, and of what good books can do to transform a person’s life.

Thanks for checking in again.  Enjoy your days and best wishes for a successful academic year to all students and parents preparing for back-to-school and college.

Note:  Other book reviews from the Super Summer Readers Club of MyCentralJersey may be seen at http://www.mycentraljersey.com/story/news/local/2015/08/30/super-summer-readers-club-book-reviews/71342058/