This is a novel of a complicated relationship. Two very uniquely different people meet, and unexpectedly connect in the very academic and educational environment of Oxford. Initially, their relationship is tenuous.
Gloria is an overachiever, serious about her studies in feminist poetry. Her rigid parents fuel her Obsessive Compulsive Disorder. Her continuous problems with it include possible contact with germs.
Henry, a musician, is her opposite. He tends towards underachievement, lost in his past and in grief. His emotionally supportive mother gone, he is left to deal with his overbearing and difficult father. To make it worse for him, his father is an Oxford official.
At first, the pair bond over a mutual passion for the music of the great Van Morrison. Gradually, they learn to open up to each other, forming a trust. They begin to depend on each other for acceptance and even validation. Their obvious differences now complement the relationship, and the relationship grows.
On their journey of learning about each other, they are on a journey of self-discovery as well. There comes a point when they must face their demons. This strains the relationship, testing it.
The characters are interesting, and well developed. They draw you into their problems and their world, making you want to follow their journey.
Andrea Kaufman writes of O.C.D. and all of its facets and behaviors with intelligence and understanding. Oxford may have messed up, but Andrea Kaye Kaufman did not.
Gloria is an overachiever, serious about her studies in feminist poetry. Her rigid parents fuel her Obsessive Compulsive Disorder. Her continuous problems with it include possible contact with germs.
Henry, a musician, is her opposite. He tends towards underachievement, lost in his past and in grief. His emotionally supportive mother gone, he is left to deal with his overbearing and difficult father. To make it worse for him, his father is an Oxford official.
At first, the pair bond over a mutual passion for the music of the great Van Morrison. Gradually, they learn to open up to each other, forming a trust. They begin to depend on each other for acceptance and even validation. Their obvious differences now complement the relationship, and the relationship grows.
On their journey of learning about each other, they are on a journey of self-discovery as well. There comes a point when they must face their demons. This strains the relationship, testing it.
The characters are interesting, and well developed. They draw you into their problems and their world, making you want to follow their journey.
Andrea Kaufman writes of O.C.D. and all of its facets and behaviors with intelligence and understanding. Oxford may have messed up, but Andrea Kaye Kaufman did not.
