September 2014

FIVE DAYS LEFT by Julie Lawson Timmer is a brilliant debut that looks at two people who are counting down the days until they will be saying goodbye to the people they love. Mara is a brilliant lawyer who has a wonderful marriage to a successful doctor and is the mother of an active little girl who she lovingly adopted. Sounds like the perfect life, right? But she’s also grappling with a debilitating disease that has her assessing her future. Her chat room compadre, Scott, is a middle school teacher who has been nurturing a young boy in his foster care while his mother serves a jail sentence; his wife is carrying their eagerly anticipated first child.

Mara’s birthday is in five days; Scott’s time with Curtis is wrapping up on the same day. Each minute takes on extra meaning as the calendar marches forth as special events are planned, and memories and dreams are charted and dissected. Their parallel stories are counted down by the day in a book that is chock-full of emotion.

I don’t want to give too much away here, as this is a story that unfolds beautifully and is crafted so well. I cried a lot at the end. I look forward to seeing what Timmer does next! Book club alert: FIVE DAYS LEFT is primed for great conversation --- each angle could warrant the entire discussion time.