Scan barcode
A review by sherwoodreads
The Readers of Broken Wheel Recommend by Katarina Bivald
Received from NetGalley.
When I was thinking about how to describe this book, the first word to mind was "sweet." But sometimes people see that word as synonymous with saccharine or syrupy.
So maybe sweetly whimsical? Or maybe a sentence is better than a word or two: I think the reader for this book enjoys a gently rambling plot, quirky characters, romance, and above all, a passionate love of books.
It was written by a Swedish author who at the time had never been to America. But from what I could tell after occasional short visits through my life, she got it spot on when she sends Sara, a lonely bookseller now out of a job, to Broken Wheel, Iowa, to visit her elderly pen friend Amy at the latter's invitation, only to discover when she gets there that Amy died.
The dying town's few people all seem to agree that Sara must stay at Amy's house, which Sara isn't happy with. A bit at sea, Sara tries to figure out what to do with herself, as she meets the townspeople one at a time. When she discovers Amy's cache of books, she opens a bookstore/library. She can't actually earn a living, as her visa prevents it, but she can, and does, give away books to those she thinks might like them. Or lends them, if the reader brings a book back in order to get another.
There are a lot of sharp observations about people, especially disappointed, hurt, or bewildered people. One of the best portraits is of the silently suffering George, the town drunk. One of the quirkiest is Grace, of a long line of gun-totin' Graces, as she will tell you, lengthily, whether you want to hear it or not.
Grace, at one point, tells an investigating officer, Men just have no sense of anything romantic. Insist on wanting to get married and have you, rather than just hanging out with a little moonshine and some semiautomatic weapons.
The women are especially well drawn, I thought. The ending might have gone on a bit long, but there were enough nuggets of sheer enjoyment there to keep me reading until the last page. It's a book to make you smile.
When I was thinking about how to describe this book, the first word to mind was "sweet." But sometimes people see that word as synonymous with saccharine or syrupy.
So maybe sweetly whimsical? Or maybe a sentence is better than a word or two: I think the reader for this book enjoys a gently rambling plot, quirky characters, romance, and above all, a passionate love of books.
It was written by a Swedish author who at the time had never been to America. But from what I could tell after occasional short visits through my life, she got it spot on when she sends Sara, a lonely bookseller now out of a job, to Broken Wheel, Iowa, to visit her elderly pen friend Amy at the latter's invitation, only to discover when she gets there that Amy died.
The dying town's few people all seem to agree that Sara must stay at Amy's house, which Sara isn't happy with. A bit at sea, Sara tries to figure out what to do with herself, as she meets the townspeople one at a time. When she discovers Amy's cache of books, she opens a bookstore/library. She can't actually earn a living, as her visa prevents it, but she can, and does, give away books to those she thinks might like them. Or lends them, if the reader brings a book back in order to get another.
There are a lot of sharp observations about people, especially disappointed, hurt, or bewildered people. One of the best portraits is of the silently suffering George, the town drunk. One of the quirkiest is Grace, of a long line of gun-totin' Graces, as she will tell you, lengthily, whether you want to hear it or not.
Grace, at one point, tells an investigating officer, Men just have no sense of anything romantic. Insist on wanting to get married and have you, rather than just hanging out with a little moonshine and some semiautomatic weapons.
The women are especially well drawn, I thought. The ending might have gone on a bit long, but there were enough nuggets of sheer enjoyment there to keep me reading until the last page. It's a book to make you smile.