The Flowers of Grass

I'm in the middle of this book, so I don't have a full review for you yet. I am finding it to be an thought-provoking story with a "what-might-have-been" undertone. Isn't life like that? Sometimes you know you made the right decision... other times you second-guess yourself! I'll be interested to know how this story is resolved. To whet your appetite, here is the description from the back cover:

"John Allen had come back to say goodbye. But he was too late; there would be no atonement."

John Allen returns to his home town after the death of his alcoholic, abusive father. He has been gone 16 years and has become a successful writer, but with major addiction problems of his own. Now he struggles to make amends with his careworn sister and dropout younger brother -- and, perhaps, to pick up the pieces of his teenage love affair with Jessie.

But Jessie has grown tired of waiting for letters that ceased to come, and has married. At what cost might their love be rekindled?

An exquisitely written, passionate and thoughtful novel, this is a classic love story framing deeper themes of mortality and passing time, the true nature of faith, and the delicate balance of human relationships.