Monday, February 16, 2015

The Order of Things



Book Review:  The Order of Things by Lynne Hinton

Andreas Jay Hackett, is a university Librarian who enjoys keeping things in order.  This summer however, she is missing her passion for the students their queries, her life itself.  Summer times in the past have been times when the butterflies would migrate down from the mountain signifying life and renewal.  This year the butterflies have not migrated and the landscape of her home is brown, taut and seemingly as lifeless as she is.  When her supervisor suggests she visit the infirmary because her work is slipping and her colleagues are tired of covering for her.  Andreas checks herself into a Holly Pines metal hospital with the goal of getting help.  Help and clarity comes through a series of conversations through a vent in the wall with a prison inmate who is housed next to her.  Gradually, as her pain lifts, she and Lathin, also a prisoner of old pain, are able to shock each other into life once again through poignant exchanges that open doors to renewal and hope.   

A slow starter, this book is so touching and real that  it brought tears to my eyes in sections.  The power of the past and the importance of examining it, sharing insights and moving forward is a universal need of mankind.


Reviewed by Karen  

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