HERE WE GO LOOP DE LOOP

Sibley’s novel welcomes readers to small-town Texas with a tale featuring a strange but entertaining passel of characters.

Marty Pennebaker has left her life in Manhattan and come back to her family’s sprawling ranch, Los Abuelos, south of San Antonio. Her father, Pete, hopes that she’ll get married and take over the place; her only other sibling, Tom, died of complications from AIDS more than a year ago. Thanks to the ranch, with its oil and gas and good grazing, the Pennebakers are inexhaustibly wealthy, and they amount to laid-back nobility in tiny Rita Blanca, Texas. Marty has a purely sexual relationship with local Pettus Lyndecker, a member of a poor family that’s just scraping by, but for Pettus, lust is turning into love, which complicates matters. Soon, Chito Sosa, Tom’s Mexican widower, arrives in town with money to fulfill Tom’s hope of making a difference in the decaying town. Other characters include twins Darcy and Delilah Lyndecker, Pettus’ sisters, and their failing flower shop; their archenemy is upstart florist Carol Ann Jansky. Another subplot involves Syrian refugee Adnan Hakim and his young daughter, Haya, who are discovered hiding on the ranch; they try to avoid deportation with other characters’ help. Sibley is an experienced novelist and playwright and a native Texan. Plot is his strong point, although readers will often find it easy to guess the next twist. However, he clearly loves his kooky characters and looks after them as only an affectionate puppeteer can: Is someone having a crisis in their life? Perhaps a marriage will help—or perhaps a sudden monetary windfall. Is a change of heart needed? If so, Sibley will look into that, too—even if that is a bit more of a challenge. Some may object to such relentless conjuring of happiness, but other readers will relish it.

A busy but wonderful example of generous escapism and a book to be recommended.