The story of Robert O'Neill, who also appeared as a minor character in "The Marquette Trilogy."
"The Only Thing That Lasts" is written as the autobiography of Robert O'Neill, the famous novelist first introduced in The Marquette Trilogy. As a young boy during World War I, Robert is forced to leave his South Carolina home to live in Marquette with his grandmother and aunt. He finds there a cold climate, but many warmhearted friends as he matures into adulthood and becomes a famous writer. The Only Thing That Lasts is a joyful, lighthearted, yet meaningful story of home and hearth.
Mr. Tichelaar says of this work, "The Only Thing That Lasts is the first novel I ever wrote. I wanted to write an old-fashioned novel in the style of Louisa May Alcott or L. Frank Baum's Aunt Jane's Nieces, or even Marquette's own Carroll Watson Rankin, whose Dandelion Cottage first made Marquette the setting for a novel."
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Reviews for "The Only Thing That Lasts"
Reviewed by Diane Walters
1/8/2013
“A true library inside a home! To possess a library was the only reason I could think of for why anyone would want to be rich.”
Okay . . . I’m hooked! How could I not fall in love with a boy (or anyone) who loves books that much? Just getting to page 85 to see the excitement on Robert’s face as he sees all those beautifully embossed books lining the shelves in that massive library and knowing that as a solid defining moment in his life is worth the five stars to me. Life was so different around a hundred years ago, and without television, telephones, computers, gadgets--I imagine to a young boy who wanted to find adventure and the mysteries of life, books would seem to hold the magic keys to the world.
Some people have compared this story to Twain’s scallywags Tom Sawyer and Huck Finn. I don’t see that here. This reminds me more of a story like Little Women with all the homespun charm of the Little House books, except from a boy’s point of view. For this, I’d like to thank Tyler Tichelaar’s brother for requesting an “old fashioned story.” (Dedication page) And, I’m a sucker for this type of tale. It is so refreshing to not have all the people being murdered, being put into jail, doing drugs, or plotting revenge tactics. This is just an easy story about a young boy’s fictional life in historic Marquette, Michigan. Robert has more than his share of hardships and emotional adjustments for a young teen during the war, (and, as a young man) yet, he always seems to find the bright spot in things even if it is only for a short period of time as is evidenced in this passage, “And so, whenever life has felt close to falling apart, I think back on that day and think of the blue and the green, the two colors that made my soul leap up in me, that made me feel like I had a deeper, inner life I was only beginning to understand.” (P. 139)
Sprinkled throughout the book were historical facts about Marquette and Mackinac Island. It was so much fun to look up these places on the Internet. I have to agree with the author that the Grand Hotel is the most impressive hotel I’ve ever seen. It looks like an amazing place as does the island itself. All this history added so much enjoyment to the story and made it really come to life.
The Only Thing That Lasts was such an enjoyable read that I’m certain I’ll be enjoying other works by Tyler R. Tichelaar.
I’d like to thank the author for this lovely copy of his book and also Review the Book.com for this opportunity to review this book.
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