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A Watershed Year

by Susan Schoenberger (Goodreads Author)

3.82 of 5 stars 3.82 · rating details · 118 ratings · 34 reviews

Two months after the death of her best friend Harlan, Lucy remains haunted by the things she never told him including her deep love for him. Then she begins receiving emails hed arranged to be sent after his death, emails that will change the course of her life. One email in particular haunts her -- he tells her he is certain she is destined for motherhood. Thus begins her...more

Paperback, 375 pages

Published March 1st 2011 by GuidepostsBooks

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Oct 28, 2011 Amara Campbell rated it 5 of 5 stars

Every sentence of this book is lyrical and evocative, wrapping grief in a padding of beautifully crafted sentences that allow you to follow the journey with your heart involved but intact. This story is equal parts melancholic, wise, challenging and funny. It seems impossible that this is Susan's first novel, the tenderness and love poured into rounding out each character and allowing them to interact organically seems more likely the work of a seasoned author.

This is not a heavy read, but not a...more

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Jul 14, 2012 Sara Strand rated it 3 of 5 stars

Before I get into my review I will tell you that I liked the book. Is this a book I would grab off my shelf and re-read? Probably not, but mostly because I feel like I understood all aspects of the book enough that re-reading it wouldn't help me understand anything any better.

I kind of loved Harlan's character and wished he had more time in the book. I realized he dies almost right away and that is what kicks off the rest of the novel, but I felt like he could have been used more, if that makes...more Before I get into my review I will tell you that I liked the book. Is this a book I would grab off my shelf and re-read? Probably not, but mostly because I feel like I understood all aspects of the book enough that re-reading it wouldn't help me understand anything any better.

I kind of loved Harlan's character and wished he had more time in the book. I realized he dies almost right away and that is what kicks off the rest of the novel, but I felt like he could have been used more, if that makes sense. I also really respected his outlook on life and impending death. Sure, he could have continued with treatment but only to gain what, another couple of years? Are you really going to accomplish everything in those couple of years? Is it fair to just prolong the process of death for those around you and even yourself? I don't know and perhaps I would feel differently if it were me in those shoes. But his outlook on life and death was refreshing and real to me.

Lucy kind of annoyed me though. I'm kind of a hard ass when it comes to things and I have very little time for the people who feel like their world is over when someone dies. I get she was in love with Harlan but come ON. Get a grip on life you Debbie Downer. That's pretty much what I would say to Lucy if she were a real person. But then she goes through the process of adopting a little boy from Russia for what I feel to be wholly selfish reasons and that irked me too. Yay for adopting a little boy but is it fair to the boy if he's going to a home with someone who decided on a whim to adopt him? Kind of seems terrible to me.

But one line in the book I absolutely loved because it really is true: "It was more like resolve, a determination to go through the motions of parenthood until, on day, she would stop remembering what it was like to be a nonparent and embrace what parenting seemed to be: experimental treatment that might or might not work, the results too far in the future to know." How perfect is that? That is probably the best description of parenting I have ever heard. You just do what you think is right and hope that it works and your kid doesn't grow up to be a serial killer. I figure if you can keep your child out of jail you've done something right at least.

So overall, it was a good book. You can tell some logical thought was put into the process because the plot moved along at just the right speed, all of the necessary road bumps you expect are there, and yet you are left satisfied at the end. It would make a really great gift for the reader on your list. (less)

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Apr 21, 2012 Sandie rated it 4 of 5 stars

If you are a birder or know someone interested in birds, this is a bird you must have for your collection. The author is a renowned birder and photographer and has combined these interests into a stunning book that will be the premiere reference guide for those who love birds.

The most striking feature of the book are the 640 scenes of birds in their native habitats. These scenes were created from over ten thousand photographs the author has taken and show the birds from near and far. There is a...more

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Dec 01, 2011 Lydia Presley rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2011, 2011-debut, contemporary, fiction

Original review posted here

People, this is not a little book. It’s 320 pages long. I started reading it at 9:30pm thinking I’d get a few chapters in. Next thing I knew I was closing the book and looking at my clock where the time of 4:30am was looking at me with accusation. I haven’t stayed up like that to read a book in one setting, or I should say, to read an adult book in one setting, in… never.

I was simply blown away by this story. Susan Schoenberger flawlessly moves between the past and pre...more

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Nov 17, 2012 Susan rated it 1 of 5 stars

Shelves: adoption, fiction

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. This book has three intertwined stories: Lucy's professional career (a professor of hagiography--lots of quirky saints mentioned, which was a pretty fun bonus); Lucy's adoption of 4 year old Mat, who is from Murmansk, Russia; Lucy's love for her friend Harlan, who dies in the opening chapter. I wish the book had stuck to the last story, as the emotional resonance of Lucy's relationship with Harlan is really lovely. The question of what to say, when to say it, how to understand a relationship so...more

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Aug 09, 2012 Jean V. Naggar Literary rated it 5 of 5 stars

“A well-told tale of life and death and the way, when we least expect it, love can encompass us roundabout...[Schoenberger] has created a vivid and continuous dream of what it means to create a kind of family, for better and worse. This is a brave and moving novel.” --Bret Lott, bestselling author of the Oprah Book Club selection JEWEL

“Schoenberger takes us to the softer places of the heart where love—in all its forms and glory—transforms grief into grace.” --Patti Callahan Henry, New York Times...more

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Nov 29, 2011 Laura rated it 5 of 5 stars

Some novels grab you and don’t let you go until you have finished a marathon reading session. Even afterwards, you find yourself thinking about the novel and wondering about various characters and plot points. A Watershed Year is just such a novel.

I will admit that I initially wanted to read A Watershed Year because of its very cool title. I am a dorky water resources engineer, and one item I do in my job is to draw watershed maps to determine where rainfall will drain once it hits the earth. A...more Some novels grab you and don’t let you go until you have finished a marathon reading session. Even afterwards, you find yourself thinking about the novel and wondering about various characters and plot points. A Watershed Year is just such a novel.

I will admit that I initially wanted to read A Watershed Year because of its very cool title. I am a dorky water resources engineer, and one item I do in my job is to draw watershed maps to determine where rainfall will drain once it hits the earth. A watershed is the boundary between two different drainage areas, although in the title to this book, the watershed is the division between the period of Lucy’s life before and after the death of her best friend (and secret love) Harlan.

Although I had my own nerdy reason for initially picking up A Watershed Year based on its wonderful title, I found myself soon swept into Lucy’s life. The book begins at Harlan’s end. He knows he is at the end of his life although he is only thirty-three and asks Lucy to be with him at the end. When she comes to be with him, she discovers he died before she got there. She grieves for him, but two months after his funeral, she starts to receive monthly inspirational, informative, and confessional emails from Harlan that outline his love for Lucy when it was too late and also explain past decisions.

The book moves on in Lucy’s life, but also flashes back to how they first met as students and ended up as professors together at the same college. Harlan was engaged for most of their relationship until he contracted cancer. Lucy and Harlan never seemed to be on the same page for having their relationship work out.

Lucy tries to move on with her life by becoming what she has always dreamed of becoming, a mother. She adopts a 4-year old boy, Mat, from Russia, but the adoption is put into jeopardy when his father arrives stating that he never signed the papers to give Mat up. Will Lucy get her happy ending?

I loved this book, the characters, the setting, and the story. Although the emails from Harlan were reminiscent of the letters after death in P.S. I Love You; it was still a wonderful and unique story. Lucy was a wonderfully complicated character that I wanted to sit down and have coffee with. I loved her friends and her family. Her problems and life seemed very realistic. I liked how the book did not turn itself into a starry eyed fantasy that Lucy would instantly find love after Harlan’s death, or that Mat would be an angelic boy. Her adoption of Mat and trying to cope with his behavior was very believable to me as a mother of three. Love in all of its complications was portrayed in a wonderfully nuanced way in A Watershed Year. I also enjoyed that the story was about a thirty-something year old woman with a career of her own trying to find her second chance at happiness.

I also loved the timeframe that this story was set in. Harlan first discovers that he has cancer when he faints as the World Trade Center towers collapse on September 11th. The novel ends shortly after America enters the War in Iraq. It brought back memories of some of our most terrible times as a country, and it was interesting to see the times reflected in Lucy’s life and her ultimate move towards hope. I also thought a side story about Lucy’s brother and sister-in-law and their hard financial times was also very relevant. After the hard financial times of this past three years, it is hard to remember that the early 2000’s also had a downturn in the economy.

Another key part of the story was that Lucy’s professional research was into the lives of saints. There were fascinating tidbits about saints throughout the novel. Lucy was a bit of a saint herself. She sacrificed a year of her life to care for her dying friend Harlan and also adopted an older boy that may have been left in the orphanage system to live a life of deprivation. She had her human failings as well – pushing Harlan and not accepting his decision to stop treatments, and not willing to realize that Mat’s father might want to keep his son. As a Catholic who became Catholic later in life, I thought the saint information was riveting, and as a reader, I liked how it played itself out throughout the novel.

Overall, A Watershed Year is a wonderfully complex novel with great, moving, and realistic characters and a captivating plot. I loved reading this novel, my only complaint was that it had to end. I would love to read more about these characters. The book club questions and interview with author Susan Schoenberger at the end of the novel were also very interesting.

This review (with some additional description) was originally posted on my blog at: http://lauragerold.blogspot.com/2011/...(less)

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Oct 18, 2011 Casey rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: teenreads-goodreads-giveaways

I really loved the way everything came together at the end. I love books where the climax comes at the beginning adn then everything revolves around it, but I also love books that are like a flashback but the flashback becomes the story (this has nothing to do with the story...). anyways, it was written in a way that i could understand, and I really really did enjoy reading it. I spent like three days on it i think, i actually finished it yesterday but had no time to get on goodreads. throughout...more

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Oct 26, 2011 Sharron rated it 2 of 5 stars

Very readable story about immature professor trying to find herself. When a close friends dies (in first chapter!) she regrets not telling him of her love despite the fact that she cared for him during his last months. Then he begins to send her e-mails once a month, (prearranged through a friend) she looks forward to the "honest" communication. He suggests she should become a mother so she looks into adoption. The only way to afford this is to get an older child from Russia who it turns out, is...more

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Oct 14, 2011 Frank Drury rated it 5 of 5 stars

As I began reading this novel, I was immediately pulled into the story about Lucy and her best friend Harlan, not just by the moving story of Harlan's battle with cancer and Lucy's pending adoption of a 4 year old Russian orphan, but more so by the wonderful prose. I usually read the first chapter of any new Kindle fiction release. Very few grab me like this one did. Halfway through the story I sent a message to the author telling her that her work reminded me somewhat of Anne Tyler, particularl...more

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Jun 30, 2011 Jana rated it 3 of 5 stars

This was an interesting book. I loved reading about her experiences in Russia adopting her son. And I liked that it seemed pretty realistic, in that they both had a lot of adjustments to go through and a lot of changing expectations. But I really didn't like the whole storyline about her dead friend. Their relationship just didn't work for me. And I really didn't like the discovery that she makes at the end, it made no sense to me and didn't seem to fit with the character.

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May 02, 2011 Kevin rated it 5 of 5 stars

I couldn't put this novel down. I was forced by my schedule to read it over a week and a half but the narratives kept playing over in my mind. I found myself eagerly awaiting the next moving passage. The writing is straight-foward prose that invokes strong images but is more than accessible to the reader. The author explores many themes in this book including grief, joy, spirituality, job uncertainty and motherhood. Strong writing, great pace, a must read.

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Feb 04, 2012 Sherry H rated it 4 of 5 stars

Susan Schoenberger plays my emotions like a fiddle.

She presents the story of a woman who loses a dear friend, a man to whom she never admitted she was in love. After his death, she pursues the adoption of a small child from Russia, while attempting to regain her footing in her life and career.

In telling this small story, Schoenberger moves effortlessly forward and backward through time. She also moves through an incredible range of emotions, and takes the reader along for the ride. In a stroke...more

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Dec 25, 2011 Denise Jo rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: first-reads, favorites, fiction

This book grabbed me from the beginning. It is a sweet semi love story of Harlan and Lucy and then the adoption of her Russian son Mat. I enjoyed the family unit, the cancer, the adoption. To say I enjoyed the cancer is not really true, but as my personal experience with my husband dying from cancer, I could relate to the story line from both points of view, as my husband and I discussed it all. I would certainly recommend this book.

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Feb 25, 2012 Carol rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: fiction, adoption, loss

What a great story! I was hooked after reading the first chapter. It's the story of Lucy (30 single something) who is in transition after losing Harlan (her dearest & closest friend to cancer) decides to make some major changes in her life -- such as adopting a 4 year old boy from Russia. Interesting and touching surprises throughout. Brought tears to my eyes.

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Oct 27, 2011 Halimah rated it 4 of 5 stars

I'm not going to lie, I had my doubts when I started the book off. I couldn't connect real well with the character Lucy presented. However, it began to pick up pace after her friend Harlan dies, and she starts considering adoption. I love Lucy's family and what I think they represent in her life. I won't say much more because I hate to ruin a good book for the people who read this review, just know, this book is a lot of drama, mainly things that only a girl/woman would be conflicted with. Overa...more

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Feb 05, 2012 Ellen Dollar rated it 4 of 5 stars

ienA good story about a woman dealing with the aftermath of a close friends' death (someone she was also in love with). Lots of understated truth about finding yourself in a difficult, unresolved, unexpected place and having to make choices, often difficult and scary ones, in order to reclaim your life.

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Jan 22, 2012 Stephanie rated it 5 of 5 stars

Be prepared, you won't be able to put it down. It's one of those page turners where you need to keep going despite the fact that you haven't started dinner for the kids yet or that it's already 1 am and you have to get up at 6.
I love Susan's writing style and can't wait for her next book!

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Oct 24, 2011 Alison rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: fiction, ian1

According to the author, this novel started out as a short story about a friend dying of cancer, and she expanded it with the storyline of a Russian adoption. It almost feels like two separate stories, but the character of Lucy is strong and sweet enough to tie them together.

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Apr 22, 2011 Jennifer rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: book-group

I read this for my book group. The author lives in town and is friends with several of the group members. I found myself reading just to get to the next bit focusing on Harlan. It was an easy read, nothing overly spectacular.

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Mar 16, 2012 Polly rated it 4 of 5 stars

This is a great story. It shows how people who are under duress can freak out, panic, and still make decisions that move them forward in a positive way. Reading this made me remember some watershed years in my life when, in the space of 12 months or less, my entire life changed. I'd definitely recommend this book.

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Aug 10, 2012 Tanya rated it 2 of 5 stars

I am probably being a little harsh with my 2 star rating but i was disappointed buy this book. I just loved the concept of the main character recieving emails from the grave after a friend dies and think the entire book could have centered around that.

There was about 10 pages in the book that i enjoyed reading and the rest was just average. I thought the main character seemed to jump into her quest to have a child and then seemed to make stupid decisions in her quest to adopt.

I think there is a...more

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Nov 30, 2011 Patrice Fitzgerald rated it 5 of 5 stars

I found this book to be a wonderful, touching read. The characters were alive and distinct, and the story was both realistic and uplifting. I recommend it highly.

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Jul 19, 2011 Kate rated it 5 of 5 stars

I couldn't put this book down. I was completely drawn in by the depth of the characters and their relationships. Lucy's efforts to take charge of her own life warmed my heart.

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Oct 18, 2011 Pam rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: tlc-book-tour

I thoroughly enjoyed this book! I am working on a more in-depth review for TLC booktours and will update this when I post it.

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Sep 15, 2011 Anna rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: to-2011

Great read - good story of hope, family and the incredible love parents have for their children.

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Mar 29, 2012 Molly Hornbeck rated it 5 of 5 stars

Wow, I was so pleasently suprised by this book. I won it in a giveaway from goodreads and once I started to read it I found it hard to put down! I instantly found myself connecting with Lucy and her struggles with losing Harlan, balancing work, and adopting a child. The relationship she formed with Mat (although tiring and stressful at times) was so heart-warming. I thought this was a VERY well-written book that tapped into my emotions and left me wanting to know more. I am so glad I read it and...more

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Feb 28, 2013 Eileen added it

This was an interesting book on how adoption can work.

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Nov 14, 2012 Nicole added it

Shelves: couldn-t-finish

I struggled to make it as far as I did: to chapter 3. The writing is all telling and no showing. I thought the main characters sounded and acted like they were in the late teens but they're 33 and 27. I didn't buy that two people of this age would hide their true feelings for one another (particularly as one of them is dying). I don't think the characters were set up enough in the first chapters to make me care for me them one way or another. Perhaps I gave up too soon but life is short and ther...more

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Mar 28, 2011 Rachel rated it 4 of 5 stars

I related to the characters and really understood their situations.
I felt the author could have gone deeper with the emotional roller coaster of adoption

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