Here’s the set-up for Lilli Jolgren Day’s The Wonder of Ordinary Magic, just 99 Cents on Kindle:Bobby Weaver is a young writer with an unfinished novel: a murder mystery involving two strangers hiking on the Appalachian Trail who slowly fall head over heels for each other.
However, there’s a caveat to Bobby’s work — Bobby’s in a coma, deteriorating both physically and mentally while still painfully aware of what’s going on around him. As Bobby strives to tie up loose ends in his final story, if just for himself and his characters, the reader is given a glimpse of the life he’s left behind in the form of day-in-the-life vignettes of his family.
A vibrant, original story steeped in symbolism and family ties, this haunting debut explores the subtle ways lives are connected, broken, and renewed by love.
One afternoon, while driving down a highway near my home, a large semi-truck suddenly swerved into my lane and cut me off. At that moment, I happened to be thinking about an important change I wanted to make in a book I was writing. As I headed for what I thought might well be that grand finale in the sky, I waited for the rush of Technicolor memories from my vanishing life to flash before my eyes.
Instead, my adrenaline-charged brain was only capable of processing one thought–if die right now, what will happen to my book? And then I wondered, what if I live but I’m badly injured in the accident, say left in a coma, could I still keep working on the book in my head? Nobody would know of course, but at least I could finish it!
As it turns out, my guardian angel must have been on her toes that afternoon, helping me to fearlessly guide my car up onto the narrow shoulder of the road long enough to let that bullying truck pass. Those few scary moments and peculiar rambling thoughts inspired this book, a spare, bittersweet story with an unexpected and poignant ending.
From the reviewers:
“Day has a knack for capturing the small details, with daily minutia presented to the reader in relatable snapshots of thrifty prose. Engrossing as a collection of shorts with a unifying theme…” -Kirkus Reviews
Just finished novel. Really enjoyed it ! Very, very clever! Would have helped if I’d had read the back cover blub first. Took a bit to figure out the characters’ relationships, but once I did, it turned into a “page turner.” Loved story within story. Can’t wait for the sequel! Congratulations ! – Edward
IT’S BETTER THAN PERFECT — IT’S MAGIC. Lilli Jolgren Day has a great sense of humor and shining wit that is revealed through her characters. This is her first venture into writing. Hope this Virgo woman graces us with more of her work. If you enjoy warm and cozy books, with sweet characters, this is a must read for you. – Pamela A. Poddany
A wonderful quick read. The writer creatively captured the human spirit in characters interwined around loves lost and present in a short time frame. The novel was moving and a captivating celebration of life. It is a reminder that we have so little time and we should be fully open to every experience. – Lisa
Visit Amazon’s Lilli Jolgren Day Page
LILLI JOLGREN DAY was born and raised in a state shaped like a mitten, somewhere between New York and L.A. She writes, takes way too many photos with her Canon 5D, and thinks the squirrel she feeds by hand at the back door is the reincarnation of her cat, Garfield. She doesn’t have any fancy writing awards to brag about, but she does have a portrait of herself inside a big pink heart, drawn eons ago by one of her children proclaiming, “Mom I know is a good mom. I love you mom.” She takes it out and reads it whenever she doubts herself and loses her way.
Lilli is the mother of two grown children, wife to Doug, a battered but grateful Celiac/CFS warrior, and like most writers, she loves to curl up with a good book and steal away on a magic carpet of words. THE WONDER OF ORDINARY MAGIC is her debut novel, the Reading Group Guide is available on her blog www.bookbabie.com
And here, in the comfort of your own browser, is your free sample of THE WONDER OF ORDINARY MAGIC by Lilli Jolgren Day: