Bob Comet is a retired librarian in his eighties in Portland, Oregon, who lives alone and passes his time in routine. One day he finds a confused old woman in his neighborhood, and the encounter prompts him to recall his past: his unhappy childhood in the Pacific Northwest, a stint as a young man in a small California town, his first love, his friendship with a man named Bill, and the life he built through books. Patrick deWitt moves between the present and the past with a quiet, comic touch, showing how a modest life contains oddities.
Readers who like gentle, observant novels about aging and ordinary lives, and who have a soft spot for libraries, will find a warm book.
Inward-looking, contemplative and thought-provoking; a moderate read.
Best for readers like The Mindful Reader. Which reader are you?
- Published
- 2023
- Language
- EN
