"The strong characters, believable situations, fine writing, and great storytelling make for a remarkably compelling book."--Booklist "Sure to be much-loved and often-shared, this graceful, funny novel nudges its characters and readers toward self renewal, change, and a chance for greater happiness. ... Diane Meier's liberating novel values both the arcane scholarship of college professors and the practical, artistic insights of handymen and real estate agents. Like "The Secret Life Of Bees", this brave, warm novel suggests that for a person who has the courage to seize a second chance, there's also the opportunity for a rewarding third chance, or fourth, of fifth..."--Sena Jeter Naslund, author of "Ahab's Wife "and" Abundance: A Novel of Marie Antoinette""Diane Meier's novel has it all: a narrator with a voice as knowing, acerbic, and funny as the best of Ephron; a plot that keeps you avidly turning the pages, and a character about as tender, touching, and exasperating as any I can recall encountering outside of real life. I loved it."--John Colapinto, author of "About the Author""Sophisticated, original, erudite, and with observations that are simultaneously profound, precise, and surprisingly funny."--Sara Pritchard, author of "Crackpots" "As in an old house, you will encounter all manner of surprises on Joy's journey and I promise, they will keep you reading far too late in the evening to be sensible."--Katherine Lanpher, author of "Leap Days: Chronicles of a Midlife Move"
