Witty and engaging, this short novel will provide readers a dose of hilarity and a quick cure for the workaday blues.
The laugh-out-loud tale of how a hapless accountant endures a three-day coma in the company of another soul in limbo, observing the gritty, often bizarre goings-on of an inner-city emergency room.
It’s just after Christmas, and Alan Fries is confused: Why are nurses wearing antlers hovering over him, and why, instead of watching the Bears–Vikings game, is he hanging out in the ER with an 87-year-old crank named Jerry? Apparently in limbo while awaiting resuscitation or a signed death certificate, the oddball pair become dead flies on the walls in St. Augustine’s—aka Holy Tino’s—an aging Chicago hospital with grave financial issues and a staff of embattled but good-hearted nurses and doctors. This cast of characters could top the Nielsen ratings in a TV sitcom: the doctor who leaves his sperm sample in the fridge, the veteran nurse putting the kibosh on an intern’s crush and the ever-plentiful nutcases who file through the ER’s sliding doors. The flirtations, the combative patients and the increasing suspicions about the hospital CEO all come peppered with Jerry’s curmudgeon commentary and Alan’s naïve curiosity regarding such ephemera as why he can’t activate the paper towel dispenser and whether he should have a bucket or an “unbucket” list. Author Knauss, who practices emergency medicine when not penning novels, structures the narrative on a framework of expertise that gives the story both legitimacy and depth. He also wisely weaves in strands of seriocomic contemplation as Alan regularly ponders his life choices and his treatment of his wife, Laura. He misses her, although strangely, he doesn’t spend time in Room 4, where she waits anxiously with his best friend. Nor does he seem interested in the progress of his tube-ridden, comatose body. But such questions aside, Alan's and Jerry’s repartee and observations are a gas to read, and the subplot that arises about halfway through adds to the sense of purpose that Alan felt was previously lacking in his life. He even plans for the future—provided he recovers.
Witty and engaging, this short novel will provide readers a dose of hilarity and a quick cure for the workaday blues.Pub Date: April 5, 2012
ISBN: 9781477572436
Page Count: -
Publisher: Dog Ear Publisher
Review Posted Online: June 25, 2012
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
A short, simple, and sweet tale about two friends and a horse.
A novel tells the story of two spirited girls who set out to save a lame foal in 1952.
Mary, age 12, lacks muscle control of her legs and must use a wheelchair. Her life is constantly interrupted by trips with her widower father to assorted doctors, all of whom have failed to help her. Mary tolerates the treatments, hoping to one day walk unassisted, but her true passion involves horses. Possessing a library filled with horse books, she loves watching and drawing the animals at a neighboring farm. She longs to own one herself. But her father, overprotective due to her disability and his own lingering grief over Mary’s dead mother, makes her keep her distance. Mary befriends Laura, the emotionally neglected daughter of the wealthy neighboring farm owners, and the two share secret buggy rides. Both girls are attracted to Illusion, a beautiful red bay filly on the farm. Mary learns that Illusion is to be put down by a veterinarian because of a lame leg. Horrified, she decides to talk to the barn manager about the horse (“Isn’t it okay for her to live even if she’s not perfect? I think she deserves a chance”). Soon, Mary and Laura attempt to raise money to save Illusion. At the same time, Mary begins to gain control of her legs thanks to water therapy and secret therapeutic riding with Laura. There is indeed a great deal of poignancy in a story of a girl with a disability fighting to defend the intrinsic value of a lame animal. But this book, the first installment of the Dream Horse Adventure Series, would be twice as touching if Mary interacted with Illusion more. In the tale’s opening, she watches the foal from afar, but she actually spends very little time with the filly she tries so hard to protect. This turns out to be a strange development given the degree to which the narrative relies on her devotion. Count (Selah’s Sweet Dream, 2015) draws Mary and Laura in broad but believable strokes, defined mainly by their unrelenting pluckiness in the face of adversity. While the work tackles disability, death, and grief, Mary’s and Laura’s environments are so idyllic and their optimism and perseverance so remarkable that the story retains an aura of uncomplicated gentleness throughout.
A short, simple, and sweet tale about two friends and a horse.Pub Date: N/A
ISBN: N/A
Page Count: -
Publisher: Hastings Creations Group
Review Posted Online: Oct. 15, 2016
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
A nonpreaching testament to the power that comes from knowing and accepting yourself.
A lyrical tale that demonstrates how a voyage of self-discovery can be more important than an outer journey.
The legend of far-off Opal Cavern has long tantalized the humanlike races that inhabit the agrarian land of Tarth: Stallis, who live above ground as we do, and the taller, curly haired, semiaquatic Wassandras, who move between the surface and the golden Wasso Lake that is their home. The villagers and lake dwellers share a belief in a divine intelligence called the Plete and a peaceful, mutually supportive way of life that has them moving in and out of each other’s lives and homes. They come together to send out an expedition in search of the cavern and to take care of those who stay behind. The energetic center of both groups belongs to Curl, a young, headstrong Wassandra, whose heart is set on joining the quest, exploring the world and marrying a Stalli. The ultimate destination, Curl discovers, is within the self, where she confronts physical limitations and her true nature. Every step is slow, methodical and resonant with enormous forethought and care. This third book in the Tarth series has the gentle pace and simplicity of a YA novel, and its sufficient exposition can stand on its own. Despite the journeying framework, Byrd (The Brueggen Stones, 2007) presents not so much an action-packed story as a heart-centered exploration of the complex affections and relationships that link individuals, families, communities and species. Even Tarth’s horses contribute their own knowledge and wisdom to the quest. Compassion, kindness and trust in divine guidance are as organic and matter-of-fact as the physical laws that govern the golden waters of Wasso Lake.
A nonpreaching testament to the power that comes from knowing and accepting yourself.Pub Date: May 3, 2012
ISBN: 978-1602903241
Page Count: 216
Publisher: OakTara
Review Posted Online: July 30, 2012
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
© Copyright 2025 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Follow
Popular in this Genre
We can’t wait for you to join Kirkus!
It’s free and takes less than 10 seconds!
Already have an account? Log in.
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
Welcome Back!
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
