Love Anthony by Lisa Genova-303 pages
Book Blurb:
Two women, each cast adrift by unforeseen events in their lives, meet by accident on a Nantucket beach and are drawn into a friendship.
Olivia is a young mother whose eight-year-old severely autistic son has recently died. Her marriage badly frayed by years of stress, she comes to the island in a trial separation to try and make sense of the tragedy of her Anthony’s short life.
Beth, a stay-at-home mother of three, is also recently separated after discovering her husband’s long-term infidelity. In an attempt to recapture a sense of her pre-married life, she rekindles her passion for writing, determined to find her own voice again. But surprisingly, as she does so, Beth also find herself channeling the voice of an unknown boy, exuberant in his perceptions of the world around him if autistic in his expression—a voice she can share with Olivia—(is it Anthony?)—that brings comfort and meaning to them both.
My Review: 3.5 stars
A perfect book to cozy up to on a cold Sunday morning. I read this book in a day and found it was an imperfectly wonderful sort of storytelling. Friends, book clubs, husbands, losses, autism, cheaters, karma and writing; this book was a melting pot of women’s issues in today’s society. The author did a phenomenal job of speaking in the 1st person of the autistic boy and kudos to her for that. I liked how she blended the two women together from early on yet didn’t let them meet for well into the book. For me, this book spoke volumes on following your heart, learning to listen and love your true self and doing the same for others. Acceptance and trust were foremost themes in the book. Sad at times but I would suggest for a book club and/or a lighter read.
Quotes I liked:
-Most people are loved conditionally. Most people are never asked to love with a whole and open heart. They only love partway. They get by.”
-“Take what you’ve learned and love someone again. Find someone to love and love without condition. This is why we’re all here.”
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