Happenstance

I often think back to decisions in my life that could have gone another way. What if I had gone to a different college? What if I had not done that volunteer program? What if I had not downed two shots of tequila at that party in Austin?

In How It All Began, Penelope Lively presents a chain of events and interactions stemming from one woman's mugging. Marriages are cast in doubt. Businesses are revived. Friendships are formed. Books are read.

Books play a central role in the story. The woman who has been mugged, Charlotte, is a retired teacher and avid reader. When she moves in with her daughter Rose to recuperate she leaves behind her library.  For Charlotte, "reading has been central, the necessary fix, the support system" (34). Although she has had to leave behind her books, Charlotte manages to continue her volunteer work as a literacy tutor. She begins meeting with one of her students, Anton, at Rose's house. What Charlotte doesn't know is that she is providing a "fix" for her daughter in Anton.

Rose and Anton have this exchange on page 125.

"I wish…" She hesitated.

"You wish?"

"I wish I'd been there too. Maybe…Maybe next time we could do a London walk together."

"I hope perhaps you say that," said Anton. "I have hope very much."

So sweet. And they haven't even done any shots.