NATURAL FLIGHTS OF THE HUMAN MIND

Straker is eaten up with guilt; Imogen is afire with anger. He lives reclusively in a dilapidated lighthouse near Dorset; she has inherited a ramshackle cottage nearby. Both are isolated captives of their pasts. They find each other, and then an old biplane—and thereby hangs a tale, gently told with charm, humor, and empathy. These unpromising misfits are surprisingly compelling, especially as limned by Patience Tomlinson. Her gossipy tone tickles one’s ears and nicely avoids the potential for pathos. Meanwhile, her characterizations are convincing and likable. She chats rather than reads, as if, over tea and crumpets, she’s telling friends of people she knows and events she’s witnessed. Y.R. Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award © AudioFile 2007, Portland, Maine [Published: APR/ MAY 07]