The conventional wisdom is that a writer's first novel is frequently autobiographical, often a coming-of-age story, or a novel of romance lost and found. Emma Hooper's debut has plenty of romance, for sure, but it more properly would be classified as a "coming-of-old-age" story, given that its title characters (well, with the exception of James) are all in their 80s.

Etta is 83 and, realizing that her mind is starting to go, decides to embark on her last great adventure. She sets off on foot from their farm in Saskatchewan, heading east, carrying little more than the clothes on her back and as much food as she can fit in a knapsack. She leaves a note for her husband, Otto: "I've gone. I've never seen the water, so I've gone there. Don't worry, I've left you the truck. I can walk. I will try to remember to come back."

"Reminiscent of THE UNLIKELY PILGRIMAGE OF HAROLD FRY and THE GUERNSEY LITERARY AND POTATO PEEL PIE SOCIETY, it is heartwarming but not excessively sweet, complex yet accessible, and full of moments that invite readers to pause and reflect on their own journeys through life."

As Etta walks and Otto struggles to figure out how to get by without her (he starts by trying to reproduce the baking recipes she has left for him, but soon branches out into his own brand of creative production), the reader learns about both of their pasts --- from Etta's family tragedy when she was a young girl to Otto's place in a household crammed with children. We find out about the events that brought them together as young adults and their respective wartime experiences, as well as the story of their oldest friend and neighbor, Russell, who has his own history with both of them. In Etta's aging mind, not only past and present become fluid categories. In a particularly intriguing commentary on long marriages, she begins to have trouble differentiating her own memories from Otto's, failing to remember where she stops and her husband begins.

During Etta's journey, both Etta and Otto become celebrities without their knowledge. Etta attracts attention for her solitary walking, accompanied usually only by a seemingly tame coyote (that would be James) whose acquaintance she's made along the way. And Otto unknowingly turns their farm into a tourist attraction, filling the yard with large and elaborate papier-mâché sculptures that not only serve the practical purpose of using up the piles of newspaper lying around the house but also act as a testament to Otto's love for both Etta and Russell.

Hooper, who is a musician and an academic as well as a fiction writer, brings her lyricism to bear on the prose, which always appears carefully chosen and controlled. Particularly in the historical sections, it is rich and descriptive, bringing both the army and the home front vividly to life. As the narrative progresses, however, and both Etta and Otto approach the end of their respective journeys, the prose becomes increasingly spare and impressionistic.

ETTA AND OTTO AND RUSSELL AND JAMES would be a delightful and fruitful choice for book clubs. Reminiscent of THE UNLIKELY PILGRIMAGE OF HAROLD FRY and THE GUERNSEY LITERARY AND POTATO PEEL PIE SOCIETY, it is heartwarming but not excessively sweet, complex yet accessible, and full of moments that invite readers to pause and reflect on their own journeys through life.