Sunday, September 26, 2010

Good to a Fault by Marina Endicott


  Clara Purdy's life was changed by a car accident.  She wasn't seriously injured, but she took on the responsibility of taking care of the family whose car she hit while making a left turn.  The Gage family -- on their way to Fort McMurray for the father to seek work -- have little more than what is in their car, and an examination at the hospital after the accident reveals that Lorraine Gage, mother of three children, has cancer.

  Good to a Fault is a novel about doing the right thing.  Clara, a single woman who mainly keeps to herself, takes in Lorraine's three children -- Darlene (about eight or nine), Trevor (five) and Pearce (about 10 months at the time of the accident) -- and her lazy mother-in-law while Lorraine is hospitalized for her treatments and while Lorraine's husband has vanished with her late mother's car.    With the help of her saintly neighbor, Mrs. Zenko, her church priest, some extended family members, and Lorraine's brother Darwin, she somehow provides a household for the children to feel comfortable in and to feel like there is more to life than being alone.  It is an enjoyable story, one that made me wonder how far I would go to help out a stranger.


  This is the third book I have completed for the Canadian Book Challenge 4
  

3 comments:

  1. Good grief, this sounds wonderful. I'd seen the cover but didn't know what it was about until I read your review. What an interesting premise for a novel. I'm adding it to my TBR list.
    Great review, and happy reading!

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  2. I really liked this book. Such a collection of characters. I was so surprised that people were mad because she tried to do something nice.

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  3. It was the kind of novel that made you think about what you would do in a similar situation. Nick Hornby wrote a novel several years ago called How to be Good which has a similar premise and was quite enjoyable as well.

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