You know that sometimes you just want a book that acts like a warm blanket and a cuppa. This book is it. Small town America - Elmwood Springs, Missouri. If you like American fiction, and I do, this may have not made itself known to you so I think I had better do that!
Stretching from just after WW2, the book starts in 1946, with Neighbour Dorothy broadcasting daily from her living room, across the state of Missouri. Community radio was quite the thing in those days, the radio shows aimed at women, the sponsors soap powder manufacturers or cooking ingredient suppliers. The adventures of this mother of two (a teen and a wayward 10 year old) start the book. Other characters arrive. Some stay, some go; some have a large part to play along the way in this wonderful tale which ends just prior to the end of the 20th century. All the chapters are quite short, some only a couple of pages, which make it easy to dip in and out of - although I just kept reading in great chunks for all of the 495 pages. If you like to read before you sleep, this would be a lovely bedside companion. For me it was just the loveliest read, with heart, soul and people you recognise.
My own reading doesn't stick with a genre...... sometimes detectives, sometimes family tragedies, sometimes just an adventure. Almost always fiction, I like a bit of fact thrown in. Sometimes I want to be excited, but I don't much care for thrillers as I always forget the story within a few weeks. What I like is a tale that "sticks". One I will remember next year, the year after, and one I will tell you about and recommend. This is one of those. Read and enjoy.
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