The Story of Arthur Truluv

The Story of Arthur Truluv by Elizabeth Berg
Fiction
2017 Random House
Finished on October 10, 2019
Rating: 4/5 (Very Good)

Publisher's Blurb:

From New York Times bestselling author Elizabeth Berg comes an emotionally powerful novel about three people who each lose the one they love most, only to find second chances where they least expect them.

For the past six months, Arthur Moses's days have looked the same: He tends to his rose garden and to Gordon, his cat, then rides the bus to the cemetery to visit his beloved late wife for lunch. The last thing Arthur would imagine is for one unlikely encounter to utterly transform his life.

Eighteen-year-old Maddy Harris is an introspective girl who visits the cemetery to escape the other kids at school. One afternoon she joins Arthur--a gesture that begins a surprising friendship between two lonely souls. Moved by Arthur's kindness and devotion, Maddy gives him the nickname "Truluv." As Arthur's neighbor Lucille moves into their orbit, the unlikely trio band together and, through heartache and hardships, help one another rediscover their own potential to start anew.

Wonderfully written and full of profound observations about life, The Story of Arthur Truluv is a beautiful and moving novel of compassion in the face of loss, of the small acts that turn friends into family, and of the possibilities to achieve happiness at any age.

Several weeks ago a friend asked me for a recommendation for a "feel good" book that he could give to his mother-in-law. Nothing came to mind, so I scanned the sidebar of my blog, hoping something would jump out at me. Nope. (Apparently I read a lot of depressing or gritty books.) Had he asked a few weeks later, I would have been able to tell him about this gem off a novel which warmed my heart and made me smile as I turned the last page. One could easily read it in an afternoon, but it was perfect for my stop-and-go reading style while on a road trip in our RV. I recently read the second book in this trilogy and have to say that I enjoyed that novel a little bit more than this one, but both are entertaining and definitely fall into the category of heartwarming or uplifting books. I'm looking forward to The Confession Club, which is the final installment in this series and due out next month.