4 1/2 stars out of 5
Dan Walsh does a terrific job with a character-driven story centered around the Christmas season. I was unprepared for the emotion impact this story would make on me. Stan and Judith are empty-nesters and for the first time, they celebrate Thanksgiving without their children and grandchildren. To make matters worse, Judith finds out that none of her children will be able to come home for Christmas either since they all live out of state and don't have the money to travel home. Judith finds herself in a depressed funk that Stan is unable to help with. I found it touching the lengths Stan would go for his wife and family, especially since it is clearly out of his nature for such gestures. And I found it realistic that Judith just doesn't snap out of depression even though she knows in her heart of hearts the true reason of the season. Like many people, Judith is searching for meaning and purpose now that her children have moved away and living their own lives. I enjoyed the various scenes as she discovers a nice purpose in her life. And again, this story will have an emotional impact on you at several times, unless you have the heart of The Grinch. The ending might have been predictable but you will find yourself not wanting it to end any other way. Lastly, my only disappointment was that there were a lot of typos in this book that I wished had been better edited, especially since I was reading a 2nd edition of the book.
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