Staggerford

I think this is one that David's mom gave me. I know it's not the one Aunt Joan gave me. She gave me "A Green Journey" by Mr. Hassler. "A Green Journey" has some of the same characters as "Staggerford," But "Staggerford was the very first book written by him about this little peculiar town.

The story follows the week in the life of 35 year old bachelor high school teacher name Miles, who has been renting a room from the protagonist of "A Green Journey," Miss Magee, for 12 years. The week deals with all the pretty crazy characters in the city. The superintendent so afraid of a heart attack that he doesn't want to be excited. The principal of the high school, who married the woman Miles loves because Miles was too slow to do anything about her when he dated her. The dentist flagrantly dating the football coach's wife. The high school senior with a crush on Miles. It's funny, and you sometimes want to hit some of them upside the head.

Then, BOOM. Mr. Hassler rips the rug right out from under you. I was in the dentist's chair when it happened, so I couldn't react the way I wanted to, which was to cry.

I came home and told Jake about it. I told him how out of the blue it was. How random. The wise one said to me, "Well, that's life, isn't it? Things happen out of the blue."

Very sweet book, the first in his Staggerford series.