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Category:
Literary Fiction
Publisher: iUniverse
ISBN-10: 1475946880
Type: Fiction
Copyright: August 2012
ISBN-13: 9781475946888
Various characters are unknowingly connected by a common denominator: An old, weatherbeaten bench in the middle of an empty field.
A solitary wooden structure sits bathed in the shade of a tree. The small, inconspicuous neighborhood park bench seemingly has the power to summon a select few who need a brief respite from life.
Matthew Leigh, a headstrong college student, just wants a peaceful break from the musty university library. As he sits on the bench to eat his lunch, he forges an unlikely friendship with a six-year-old boy that eventually forces him to rethink his entire philosophy on life.
Derrick Weston has just faced rejection from the woman he wants to marry. As he seeks solace on the bench, he has no idea he is about to learn that his girlfriend has a secret that will dramatically impact both their lives.
Joe Cooke and his friends just want to feel free. As they meet at the bench illuminated by moonlight, they all soon learn that actions have consequences and that blood is not always thicker than water.
Septuagenarian Graham Hanson sits there with the love of his life, and learns the true meaning of marriage, companionship, and the phrase, “Till death do us part.”
In this compelling tale, several ordinary people forced to confront complex issues are connected by one common denominator—an old, neglected bench in the middle of a grassy square.
EDITORIAL REVIEW
The basic premise and overall theme of the work is timeless; life is short and we must make the best of it. The author presents it in an exceptionally compelling way, using a bench in a park-like setting as a device. Not only does it communicate the timeless theme of the work, but it also demonstrates how this theme connects all of humanity.
Each of the characters represents a different, existential issue related to the temporality of life and the value of living one’s life to the fullest, in the moment. With the wide variety of moral and existential issues represented by each character, readers are likely to form emotional connections with any one of them or even all of them.
The author’s approach to the structure of the book is brilliant and rare. The characters face realistic challenges that cause each of them to ask deep questions about meaning as it relates to topics such as gender, destiny, sexual orientation, love, God, and death. The characters’ lives will come together in a way that readers won’t likely anticipate. Their epiphany, and perhaps the reader’s, brings the overall theme into focus.
The author has composed an awesome story. ~ iUniverse Editorial Evaluation
Excerpt
She hesitated, and he knew the answer. “You don’t know, do you? He might never wake up.”
Sister Marsha shook her head sadly. “It could be tomorrow. It could be next week. Or it could be a long, long time from now, we don’t know. The only thing we can do is to pray for the best, and keep him alive.”
“Pray for the best,” he said scornfully, and actually laughed. “You religious people are just amazing, you know that? I mean, he's shitting on death’s door and all you can do is say ‘we’ll leave it to God, let Him decide’. Well, looks to me like your God’s not making the right decisions here, is He? I mean, what the hell did he do to deserve this?” Tears welled up in his eyes, forcing him to blink them back, I will not cry, I will not cry…! And he turned to the nurse and spat, “What the hell kind of merciful God would let this happen, huh? I mean, just look at him! What the hell has he done? Merciful God, my ass! If God really does exist, then He’s one hell of a vindictive bastard, that’s what I think! Jesus Christ!”
The nurse’s hand, which she’d placed on his shoulder, remained there. In fact, he felt her give him a little squeeze, as if she understood his trauma, his confusion; as if, in actuality, she’d also been struggling with her faith, secretively, hidden underneath the white tunic and crucifix hanging around her neck. He turned back to the bed and let out a soft cry—one of anger, of frustration, of total helplessness.
The nurse waited, and he muttered under his breath, "Seems to me that this concept of a ‘merciful, loving Father in Heaven’ ought to be dragged into the street and shot, because I sure as hell can’t see how GOD works in this situation here,” he declared, uttering the word 'God' as if it were a curse. He laughed again, bitterly, brimming with resentment. “I don’t get it. I just don’t fucking get it.”
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