MISCALCULATION

A pair of novellas that focus on themes of morality and life lessons.

Leven’s first work in this book, “More than a Diamond,” centers on a woman named Allison, who’s hellbent on saving up for and purchasing the best diamond she can afford. She works for years to save up for the expensive purchase, does her research into which diamonds are best, and visits all the jewelry stores in her area to see the stock they have. After finally buying the necklace and wearing it every day for a few years, Allison is mugged and the diamond is stolen. The diamond was insured, so she gets her money back, but it forces Allison to come to terms with the fact that she was so attached to the gem because it made her feel superior to others. The second, less complex novella, “You Just Can’t Do That,” tells the story of a computer programmer named Cynthia who’s fired from her job after over 20 years of loyalty; it follows Cynthia’s thoughts as she reconciles herself to how the decision is completely out of her control. In these two long stories, Leven’s writing is clean and efficient, and the style feels old-fashioned at times; the dialogue, in particular, sometimes feels like banter from an old movie, which can be charming: “The less contact with the rabble and riffraff that’s out there, the better.” The protagonists, however, feel flat and underdeveloped; they learn exactly one lesson during their respective tales, and the ones that they learn are ones that readers will have seen many times before.

Two novellas with appealing dialogue but familiar motifs.