Book Review... The Hour I First Believed by Wally Lamb

What have you been reading lately? I recently finished Wally Lamb's The Hour I First Believed and am happy to report that it was well worth the time spent! At first I thought "who wants to read a book about the shootings at Columbine", but I had read quite a few good reviews and while I was standing in Borders and it was lying on a table with a 50% off sticker on it I decided to pick it up and crack it open- just to get a feel for the writing. What I understood after a few minutes of reading was that this Wally Lamb guy can really write. I bought it. And even though I was in the middle of another book, once I started reading this book I couldn't put it down.

Caelum Quirk is a high school teacher and his wife Maureen is a school nurse. They move to Littleton, Colorado and are working at Columbine High School. While Caelum has to leave for Connecticut to tend to his Aunt who just had a stroke, Maureen is stuck in a cabinet in the school library hiding, while the shootings are beginning at the school. Maureen does survive, but just barely. This story is about Caelum trying to help Maureen get over the horror that she went thru and how far love can be stretched to cover a deep wound. Caelum and Maureen move to his family's farm in Connecticut to start over. But Maureen isn't the only one starting over- Caelum starts over too- dealing with family secrets and the past he left behind. The characters are so human. And the story is so realistic I had to keep reminding myself that this was fiction and not the real retelling of the Columbine shootings.

So, here's the gist- READ IT! A good solid story with great characters!