In Five Years...revisited

My book group has chosen this as our May title so I figured it would be a good time to resurrect these comments based on my first reading a few years back.  Got me thinking about how much changes in a short period of time and how quickly.  There have been surprises in my life, for sure, and in the lives of many friends.  they have been profound, maddening, provocative, and and many levels -life changing.  Suddenly, this simple, Sunday afternoon read had me doing some deep diving.  I seldom do a second go-round with a book, but this was good.  Thank you, Mary, for selecting this book for us.

 In five Years seems to be the hot go-to book right now.  Chick lit?  Rom-com? Beach read?  Sure. All of them.  When you applied for your first real job – you know the one you hoped would be a “career” and not just a nine to five gig – were you asked the big question, “Where do you see yourself in five years?”?  Most of us were.  That’s where we poured our altruistic selves out to the interviewers in Miss America fashion.  Now, with my teaching career behind me, I understand what a very big question that was.  This book blows open our expectations of the future and suggests that we may not be in charge after all.

Our protagonist, Dannie Cohan, type A, resume building stoic, has her days, her life and her world planned.  She calculates every decision with a keen eye to whether or not it will get her where she wants to go.  She’s hard to relate to, for sure, but not unlikeable.  In fact, I can’t think of another novel I have read where I have rooted for every character. 

Dannie falls into a deep sleep on the night of her engagement and dreams she awakens in a strange apartment, with a strange man.  It is 2025.  The man, Aaron, knows her, knows everything about her, and goes about the day’s business as though it were routine for both of them.  Oh, it gets a bit steamy, and Dannie confesses it is the best bit of steam she has experienced in a long time. Shortly after, she wakes from her dream and moves on with only minimal thought about the dream until….

…Bella, Dannie’s lifelong friend introduces her to her latest…and TaDa…her latest is Aaron, from the DREAM!  I’m not revealing any spoilers here, all of that happens in the first twenty-five pages.  Here’s where I got a big surprise.  I thought, Oh, this is going to be tons of fun, a jolly romp as the Brits might say,  lots of cat and mouse type games, a door slammer plot.  I couldn’t have been more wrong.  The author takes us on all sorts of twists and bumps, including some tear-jerking moments, and an unexpected ending. 

This quick Sunday afternoon read might be just the thing you need for a little escape.  Maybe, if we all stay healthy and work hard to keep those around us healthy, we will be back to normal in  five years.

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Stay safe. Stay healthy. Stay happy.