When I found this skinny book (just under 200 pages) on the "one week shelf" at my local library, I grabbed it because Anne Tyler is a favorite author. And I read it in just a few days. And I enjoyed it, but it was NOT her best work of fiction.
The story is told from the point of view of Aaron, a man recently widowed, and recounts his reaction to his wife's untimely and unexpected death.
She is a physician; he is an editor for his family's vanity press. They meet when he is doing research for a book the firm is publishing. Aaron suffers from a handicap resulting from a childhood virus. He and Dorothy seem an odd match on first account, but they actually are pretty well suited to each other.
After her death, Aaron tried to remain in their home (where she was killed by a tree falling through the roof!), but eventually has to move in with his sister, Nandina. He hires a contractor to do the repairs, but never visits the house after moving in with his sister. At least not until she starts dating the contractor, Gil, and Aaron is uneasy in the house with them.
The odd but touching part of the book are the scenes in which Dorothy comes back to visit and chat with Aaron. The reader knows that the conversations that take place between the couple are really just conversations between Aaron and himself, trying to cope with his loss and the unfinished business between the couple.
The story did touch me, even though it was a bit simple and predictable. But I enjoyed the ending - and I won't give it away!
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