GOING TO BEND

This warm, surprising first novel is about friendship in a small Oregon town where everyone knows too much about everyone else, yet even the oldest friends have hidden important truths from each other. Spunky, hard-luck Petie Coolbaugh and kind, soft-shelled Rose Bundy have been close since childhood. This story finds them raising children without enough money, trying to manage a loser husband (Petie) and a skittish boyfriend (Rose) and get a little ahead cooking soups for the new café in town. Bad things happen, good things happen, mistakes are made and forgiven. Hillary Huber delineates each character with such delicacy that you somehow see whole flesh-and-blood people, and care about all of them. B.G. © AudioFile 2004, Portland, Maine [Published: JUN/ JUL 04]