Review Detail

Third Willow is not a novel to rush through, but one to savor and linger over, mull and muse upon, and maybe enjoy with a rush of nostalgia and a tinge of wistfulness that'll remind you of a time that maybe is long past, yet just as precious today for its memories - or one you're still living through in some small way or the other, as you continue the ongoing struggle of "growing up" every day.

This book pulls you in and engages you in the story. Within a few pages, you'll no longer be reading a book. You'll be sharing the lives and dreams of Patsy and Hap, then Beah and Raz.

Centered around a majestic willow tree in a lovely remote part of Nebraska, the story revolves abount a tiny community and 4 of its young inhabitants.

You're subliminally aware that the tale is set in the 50s, in the aftermath of the Korean War, but you are more consciously involved in the lives, thoughts and pre-teen angst of the four young protagonists - which timelessly reflect the pain and pleasure of growing up and coming of age.

Third Willow traces their transition from childhood to adolescence through a series of circumstances, events and philosophies, doing this in an empathic and sympathetic fashion that will have you rooting for your favorite person, issue or challenge. And there are plenty, ranging from sexuality to spiritualism, religion to homosexuality, struggles of being honest and fair and loyal and morals in other words, the typical growing up pain all of us have felt as youngsters, and our little ones will feel as they grow up too.