Gary William Murning

I’d forgotten what this book was about, as it has been a while since I received a copy of it for review (where does the time go?!). I was, however, confident that having accepted it for review, I must have been attracted by its 'blurb', and therefore embarked on the reading journey with enthusiasm and high expectations. This book was like unwrapping what you thought was a toffee and finding a soft and delicious truffle: not what you were expecting but a rather lovely surprise.

Two very ordinary people, with very ordinary lives, demand little from life. They have their own extra-ordinariness in their own bubble of a world; it’s whole, it’s complete, it’s happy and fulfilled. What could possibly shatter it? Never in their lives, did Lorna and Tobias think a bollard—which shouldn’t have been where it was when it was—would rock their perfectness, their nirvana. Although it’s said everything happens for a reason, our bliss-cocooned couple have to face a torpedo crashing through their lives. Their story is how they prepare and cope, helped by the renewed friendship with Tobias’ old school friend, Bob, and his partner, Patsy.

I really, really liked this book. It’s extremely well written, with some quite profound philosophical and ethological content (à la McKenna and Dawkins), which, I confess, lost me just a bit, but it didn’t detract from the beautiful story embracing it. The four main characters are delightful: they’re quirky, unique, funny, intelligent, eccentric and utterly likeable. It’s surprisingly uplifting. I’ll just say ‘surprisingly’, because I don’t want to give too much away by saying why. There’s a dry, wry sense of humour threaded throughout, and the dialogue is sharp and witty. A lovely book.… (más)