Amazing! The story drew me right in and kept me there. Stereotypes abound in this story, some to be destroyed, others to be created, but the characters always surprised me. The ending I was expecting almost came, but went off in an unexpected direction. It was funny to realize that writers often create wish-fulfilling fairy tales , full of what-if scenarios, and characters bursting out of their shells, but this story is more true to life, without the idealistic happy ending. Don't get me wrong; I like happy endings where people overcome odds, sterotypes, and restrictive chilhoods, and this wasn't one of those. However, I loved this story. Its ending surprised me, but made sense. I think it is a more powerful story than it could possibly have been with a make-believe happy ending. This is how people are and what oftens happens - not to them - but what they do to themselves, and allow themselves to do. The ending initially saddened me, but somehow, in retrospect, seems to carry a bigger, more complex message. Highly recommend it.
