by Patrick Ryan
First published 1965
Hubert Calendar sits at his kitchen table on an ordinary morning, making lists. Not grocery lists or chores, but something deeper. He counts what he has gained and what he has lost. His wife Martha hums in the next room. His grown children live their own lives in distant cities. The neighborhood changes around him while he remains in the same house where he raised his family. Hubert measures his days against his expectations, weighing small disappointments against unexpected joys. He remembers his father's advice about gratitude and his mother's warnings about wanting too much. As seasons pass, Hubert discovers that taking inventory of a life requires more honesty than he anticipated. The simple act of counting reveals truths he had avoided facing.
Genres: literary-fiction, family-life, contemporary, slice-of-life
Vibes: emotional, intimate, thought-provoking
Tropes: character-study, slice-of-life
Setting: Kitchen, Neighborhood
Period: Seasons
206 pages · Hardcover · Frederick Muller