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For some people, life is like your favorite movie, or like your favorite novel, just not as tidy and quite the way you plan it.
Cornelia Brown is quirky. When Martin Grace walks into the off-beat diner she manages, she steps into the plot of all her favorite movies. But Cornelia is not star struck or flighty. She chooses the direction of her life. Educated and intelligent, it is her choice to manage a diner rather than step into a career she doesn't feel passionate about. Martin Grace's appearance changes her life, but not in ways that she expects.
Young Clare Hobbes has only ever known her mother's love. So when her mother begins to act erractically, Clare is troubled and confused and frightened. A child of divorce, she reaches out to her absent father who poo-poohs her fears, forcing Clare to take a stand and become her own caregiver at 11 years old while her mother becomes increasing unstable. When Clare's mother finally cracks and leaves Clare standing beside the road alone and helpless, Clare has no choice but to call her father, which brings her front and center into Cornelia's life.
Cornelia can see immediately the fear and trepidation on Clare's face when she meets the
heretofore unmentioned child of the nearly perfect man she's been dating. More than that, she can see the complete lack of interest her boyfriend has in his own daughter. Not an endearing trait in a man you are hoping to get closer to. But that's the thing about Martin Grace: although he's fun and charming and witty and handsome and the perfect catch, there's a distinct lack of depth in him that prevents Cornelia from falling in love with him. Not so with his fragile daughter. Cornelia immediately tries to mend the little girl's broken pieces and finds herself deeply attached, more to the daughter than to Clare's father.
This book is captivating. Not only in its allure in comparing every day life to classic movies and songs, it's like talking with your best friend, or at times, like reading your best friend's diary. The depth of emotions conveyed by Cornelia and the way she interacts with her inner circle - her family, her friends - are endearing and binding. This is a book you don't want to put down. I admired Cornelia's clear vision in doing the right thing alongside the mesh of family and friends that uphold her through these difficult decisions with their unwavering love and support. This book is a keeper on my bookshelf to be read over and over, one that I can't lend to my friends for fear of not getting it back, but one I will happily buy for them along with a glowing recommendation. A must read, especially for lovers of classic movies.
Reviewed by Karla Brandenburg
for The Road to Romance
May 31, 2007
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