AmosL
06-29-2008, 08:23 AM
Yarbrough, Shannon. “Stealing Wishes”, ToSow Publishing, 2008.
On a Quest for Mister Right
Amos Lassen
My copy of Shannon Yarbrough’s “Stealing Wishes” came the other day and I could not wait to read it. I enjoyed Yarbrough’s first book, “The Other Side of What’ and let me tell you that his new book bowled me over. It’s that age old tale of looking for the right man and here it is rendered beautifully with a whole new twist. I love it when writers pull a surprise and write a new book that just has everything going for it—great characters, a good plot, an even better love story and, most important, a distinctive writing style that keeps the reader glued to the pages.
I am much like Yarbrough in that sometimes it is hard to decide which is better—“a perfect cup of coffee or the perfect date”. It’s a serious issue. With a cup of coffee one does not have to talk to it, interact with it or get dressed for it. With a date there is a certain amount of work required and sometimes it is too much trouble to be bothered with. It certainly would be best if we could have both—the author obviously does as he dedicates his book to his partner by saying that he still looks forward to coffee with him every morning (and I am so jealous).
“Stealing Wishes” is one of those books that can be read over and over again and never bores. The characters are people like ones we either know or want to know and the kind of guys that we root for.
Blaine is a 32 year old coffee barista who is both obsessed with his age and he fact that he cannot find the right man. He spends his time reading Christopher Isherwood, taking photos and stealing money out of public fountains. His friends fix him up but things don’t work and what he does not realize is that his Mister Right has been right in front of him but he has not noticed. Being obsessive causes him to see things in ways that he misses the most obvious. It takes a photo contest to get Blaine’s eyes to focus on reality. Like Blaine, we have to let our daily routines go awry every once in a while in order to see the forest from the trees. When he does this, he finds that he has missed so much and that his obsessive outlook has caused him to be misguided.
There is obviously a lesson here and Yarbrough gives it to us in an emotionally packed novel that is full of a lot of heart and a lot of hope. No one can cure out compulsions for us but us ourselves. We must recognize them in order to get past them and Blaine does just that.
The charm of “Stealing Wishes” will stay with you for a long time. Get a copy, fix a good cup of coffee and sit back and have one "helluva" good read.
On a Quest for Mister Right
Amos Lassen
My copy of Shannon Yarbrough’s “Stealing Wishes” came the other day and I could not wait to read it. I enjoyed Yarbrough’s first book, “The Other Side of What’ and let me tell you that his new book bowled me over. It’s that age old tale of looking for the right man and here it is rendered beautifully with a whole new twist. I love it when writers pull a surprise and write a new book that just has everything going for it—great characters, a good plot, an even better love story and, most important, a distinctive writing style that keeps the reader glued to the pages.
I am much like Yarbrough in that sometimes it is hard to decide which is better—“a perfect cup of coffee or the perfect date”. It’s a serious issue. With a cup of coffee one does not have to talk to it, interact with it or get dressed for it. With a date there is a certain amount of work required and sometimes it is too much trouble to be bothered with. It certainly would be best if we could have both—the author obviously does as he dedicates his book to his partner by saying that he still looks forward to coffee with him every morning (and I am so jealous).
“Stealing Wishes” is one of those books that can be read over and over again and never bores. The characters are people like ones we either know or want to know and the kind of guys that we root for.
Blaine is a 32 year old coffee barista who is both obsessed with his age and he fact that he cannot find the right man. He spends his time reading Christopher Isherwood, taking photos and stealing money out of public fountains. His friends fix him up but things don’t work and what he does not realize is that his Mister Right has been right in front of him but he has not noticed. Being obsessive causes him to see things in ways that he misses the most obvious. It takes a photo contest to get Blaine’s eyes to focus on reality. Like Blaine, we have to let our daily routines go awry every once in a while in order to see the forest from the trees. When he does this, he finds that he has missed so much and that his obsessive outlook has caused him to be misguided.
There is obviously a lesson here and Yarbrough gives it to us in an emotionally packed novel that is full of a lot of heart and a lot of hope. No one can cure out compulsions for us but us ourselves. We must recognize them in order to get past them and Blaine does just that.
The charm of “Stealing Wishes” will stay with you for a long time. Get a copy, fix a good cup of coffee and sit back and have one "helluva" good read.